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blackbutlerbitch23 · 2 years

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💖Now that I have some followers who cannot escape my feed and are forced to listen to me, I will rank my top 5 ships from Black Bulter from Worst to Best and explain why I placed them there. BTW my opinion is 100% correct, AND no, I do not take criticism. Buckle up your seat belts because this will be a long ride, and no, we're not gonna stop; you should have gone to the bathroom before we left. Now sit back, relax and HAVE FUN, EVERYONE!!!! 💖

5. Vincent & Madam Red

Aesthetically this couple is fantastic. Betrayal, drama, jealousy, and forbidden love. There's a reason why blue and red are often paired together. PRIME COLOURS, BABY. That's what the kids call colour theory 😎. ANWAY, this is the Angelica Schuyler (work, work) and Alexander Hamilton (lol, you defiantly threw away your shot) ship of the Black Butler community. Even the name Angelina looks and sounds similar to Angelica. They are a bisexual dream of "may I have a side of step on me" 👞👡. They would have been that couple. Yet, I gotta rate them at number five because even though they would be slaying it together (literally and figuratively *very clever jack the ripper and watchdog joke*🔪), it does reduce the intelligent and independent Madam Red into an "uwu notice me sempai" girl. She gets turned from girl boss (affectionate) into girl boss (unaffectionate). Like GURL, I know he is bad, but you are a Miranda in a world full of Nates. The Devil wears Prada because he has taste👠. He's not worth trying to stab an eye-patched child over.

7/10 - if I was Angelina, I would have poured red wine over Rachel's wedding dress because I'm petty like that👰🍷.

4. Mey-Rin & Ronald Knox

I KNOW WHAT YOU ALL ARE THINKING🧠. That's right, I'm telepathic AF. Call me Anya 2.0. "Didn't they only interact once?" Yes, and your point? I could sense the chemistry and potential oozing like a warhead from that singular interaction. When Mey-Rin said that was the first time she ever got hit on, I was shocked and appalled because that girl is a hot warrior queen 👑like some Victorian Hippolyta. If I was shot by Mey-Rin, I would thank her because that meant she noticed little ol' me. Ronald (lol nerd) may *technically* be a dead sociopathic playboy, but underneath all that, he is also a clumsy idiot with some pretty snazzy fighting skills like a certain maid ;)). They both rock the sexy geeky🤓 look, AND Mey-Rin deserves to be swept away by a man who understands the struggle of trying to impress your superior (and failing horribly) while cleaning out blood stains🩸. They are number four because I vaguely get some The Mister by E.L James vibes, which makes me break out in a cold sweat 😷🤢if I think about it for too long. Plus, they did only interact once. God, imagine having Grell as a mother-in-law.

7.5/10 - Call me captain because Imma go down with the ship like the Campania that brought these virgins together⚓.

3. Ciel & Sieglinde

Bubala, I want to get this out of the way before we proceed. I'm no Humbert Humbert. Miss me with that ❌Lolita❌ shit (although it's a fantastic book, shout out to my lad Nabokov). When I ship kids, it's in an "it would be cute in the future" way. I don't expect a thirteen-year-old and ten-year-old actually to date. Kapeesh? Anyway, this is also not a reflection of Elizabeth as a character. We can all agree that their relationship was doomed the minute Lizzy discovered that OCiel wasn't RCiel and proceeded to have one of the worst reactions possible™. She tried to kill Sebastian, ran away from home, and let a TEENAGER get arrested because she got Parent Trapped. Girl, you even knew he was innocent but go off sis🙄💅. You know, ✨everyday rich girl things✨. Sieglinde, our little green witch, adores Ciel for who is truly is, not the broken-down actor carrying around his brother's ghost. Our scientist saw OCeil at his lowest point and still came to respect him. She also was tricked by him but didn't try to get him arrested, so...🙄💅. I'm more of an On the grind 💪 appreciator than a girl boss, manipulate gaslight type. Gotta love a spider leg, girl.

Unlike Elizabeth, who has dealt with tragedy from a distance (and don't get me wrong, she hasn't had an easy ride. It's just more psychological/self-inflicted), Ciel and Sieglinde, these two pipsqueaks have been through hell and back but came out stronger. In short, they can relate to each other's pain more than others their age. Plus, she's super adorable and a genius who can keep up (and outsmart) Ciel and is unafraid to be herself. They might not win in a leg race, but they will destroy you on a chessboard♟️. The best girl in town deserves the worst boy in London 😈.

8/10- Don't witches 🧙‍♀️ love the devil or whatever? Hocus Pocus girl and contract boy can fangirl over the same demon together. Fandom goals

2. Diedrich & Vincent

Ah, Hello again, Vincent. You have shown up on this list more than the actual Manga. Anyway, WHEN I SAW THE PANEL, THE ONE WITH "THE DAYS SPENT WITH YOU ARE BURNED INTO A MEMORY," I WANTED TO CRY. OMFG. I LOVE IT SO MUCH 😭😭😭😭💖💖💖💖. They look so sweet together there🥺. I'm a bitch for dark English academia shit because I am basic AF. Like, don't come at me. I know dark academia has a somewhat problematic history, but Imma keep shoving it down my throat like how Diedrich shoves down those sandwiches😏. The relationship between Vincent and Diedrich is so angsty that I need some rain boots because it's pouring tears out here. Even years after Vincent dies, Diedrich remains loyal to him and tries to save his child (in his "I hate you but I serectly love you" way).

Now I can hear you exclaim, "well, Vincent basically enslaved German boy as his brother-servent thing," but let me tell you, if he wanted out, he could have just stayed in Germany, but that Guten Tag man kept visiting that fine British ass until the day that fine Britsh ass was burnt to a crisp. Vincent was hot until the day he died🔥. Diedrich even keeps a picture of their time together and thinks of it fondly, despite Vicent treating him like a lapdog. THIS MAN DIDN'T EVEN GET MARRIED!!!! WAS IT BECAUSE HE WAS TOO BUSY WITH VINCENT🤔🤔🤔???? Probably not, but for my sake, I will say yes. If Lana Del Ray's music was a couple, it would be this one. They are at number two because as much I love them, there is one ship I adore a bit more. Plus, Vincent has so many side pieces that I don't trust him to stay in a monogamous relationship.

8.5/10 - I wish I knew WHY Vincent chose Rachel over these icons. Like girl, we have no beef, but I need to understand how you collared Vincent🐕‍🦺.

1. Sebastian & Agni

HAHAHA, YOU MUST OF ALL KNOWN MY (DE)MAN WOULD HAVE TO BE A PART OF MY NUMBER ONE PAIR!!!! Oooooh, the scene where Sebastian said that Agni was the first person to ever call him a friend👌👌👌. Sebastian's first friend. Think about that. The AMOUNT OF ADMIRATION they had for one another. This is Sebastian "lol, humans are bugs I like to burn with my magnifying glass" Michaelis, who respects nothing but himself (and cats). Yet, he believed Agni to be an "exemplary butler" who lived up to his ~asethics~ and Agni, the literal right hand of Kali, reached out (no pun instead) to a DEMON and saw something worth appreciating.

Sebastian even listened to his advice over Ciel's. His master and meal ticket. The guy he signed the bloody contract with. That's like if your lawyer turned to the opposition and said, "they make a fair point, and I agree my client is in the wrong." Like WHAT???? Seb values Agni's advice. A human. In Yana's own words, a species he views as nothing more than a cluster of pests. At best, they're amusing, like how a kid keeps an ant farm. Yet, Agni is different. Here the grasshopper has become the master🙇.

Their potential stepdad AUs were just up my ally. FOUND FAMILY ADMIRES UNITE! But I gotta admit, as much I love Soma, I would give him up for adoption if he was my kid. I can't deal with that level of extra. At the very least, he would go to theatre camp for the entire summer and boarding school, as is tradition for most rich British families. See, I'm not totally heartless😘! Talking about heartlessness, don't even get me started on Agni's death scene because I will ugly cry. When Sebastian dirtied himself with Agni's blood, even tho we all know that prissy bitch is more protective over his clothes than a runway model😔✊. That was the most upset we had ever seen him (outside of almost losing his son Ciel), and he seemed at least happy Agni died in peace. I doubt Sebastian can genuinely mourn, but now at least, he has double reason to hate Undertaker.

In Conclusion, I just think they are neat.

9.5/10- YASS KING, WHISPER YOUR DEMON SHIT WHILE HE PRAYS TO KALI!!! However, I can't give this a perfect score because one half is dead, and I do not support necrophilia💀. I hope we get Ciel and Sebastian explaining to Soma that they did not kill his daddy and, in fact, were planning a family vacay🏖️. I swear to god, if they have Soma work with RCiel, Imma flip my lid like a fucking kettle. Overall, they would have been couple goals💏.

#LONG POST BITCHES #Black butler ships #🛳��🛳️🛳️#kuroshitsuji #black butler #text post #sebastian michaelis #ciel phantomhive #elizabeth midford #mey rin #agni #agniseb #vincent phantomhive #madam red

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the-ferocious-kittyrose · 2 years

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William Afton’s backstory and motivation

(Part 2 coming soon)

William’s parents were James and Elizabeth Afton. James was a pilot in WW2. Obviously, the war did serious damage to his psyche. He saw a lot of death, lost friends, lost his leg, it was a bad time all around. When he came home, he was a shell of the man he once was. He barely spoke and would drown his demons in liquor. His mother Elizabeth wasn’t doing so well during all of this. She had been dealing with intense depressive episodes her entire life, and with the trauma of losing family and friends in the war, and now her husband shutting her out, she was in a really bad place. She did a good job hiding it from her son and putting on a happy mask, but it didn’t last. It was William that found her body. She had put a shotgun in her mouth. There was blood everywhere, mixed with bits of bone, brain matter, and brown curly hair. He was in complete shock, he couldn’t move. He stood there for two hours before his father came home and saw everything. A couple days passed as the police dealt with the situation and had everything cleaned, after which James packed a bag of William’s stuff and told him he was going to be staying with his aunt Margret in America for a few weeks. He never explained why, and as weeks turned into months, and months turned into years, William realized his father wasn’t coming back for him. Obviously all of this was a lot for a little kid to go through. William chose to deal with it by simply not dealing with it. Thinking about everything was painful. It was easier to just bury all his negative emotions down and pretend he was fine.

William was always very intelligent but not that great at school. He was smart, he just didn’t participate or do any work. Instead, he would spend his time in class doodling silly characters and cartoons. William always loved cartoons and comic strips, they were a source of comfort in terrible times. William was also incredibly good with machines. As a teenager, he dropped out of school and got a job as a mechanic, and in his spare time, he would read books on robotics and engineering. He would even build little robots of his own in his garage. It was just a hobby at the time, but it was something he was passionate about.

William wasn’t very good with people. He was very funny, charismatic, and animated, but his peers found him strange and creepy. He had a childish yet morbid sense of humor, and would casually bring up disturbing/depressing topics as if they were completely normal. It didn’t help that he had a habit of burying all his negative emotions until it all boiled over and exploded on people that really didn’t deserve it. He got into more than a few fights over meaningless shit. William knew he was different than the people around him, he couldn’t quite place why, he just knew that he was wrong in someway. He tried his best to adapt and fit in, reading a ton of books on social etiquette and how to make friends, but even if he did everything right people still picked him out as being weird. He was lonely, but rather than admit that, he just told himself he didn’t need friends. He was smarter than all these people anyway.

His only real Friend was Henry Emily. A business major and son of William’s boss, Richard Emily. Richard was a talkative old man, and had mentioned his son to William many times. He would talk about how smart and kind he was and how proud he was of him and it made William incredibly jealous. He disliked Henry before he even met him. William was sure this Henry guy would be some spoiled bratty prick, but when Henry actually showed up at the shop one day, William found out he was anything but. Henry was friendly, handsome, and charming. Everyone in the shop loved him, and he talked to all of them like they were family. This kinda just made William hate him more. William had to work so hard to get people to like him, and this guy could just do it effortlessly. Henry introduced himself to William and was promptly brushed off. But Henry was strangely persistent and kept trying to start conversations with William, which he wasn’t used to. Once Henry and William actually got to talking, William found he actually enjoyed talking to Henry, he had interesting stories about college and was surprisingly smart and funny, he was drawn to Henry in a way he had never experienced before, and it made him feel happy and warm. They became friends relatively quickly. William was worried he’d scare Henry away, like he had done in the past, but Henry seemed to genuinely like William, which was a surprise to everyone. Henry was very impressed by William’s art and even more so by his robot projects. Eventually, the two got an apartment together and spent many drunken nights improvising stupid songs in cartoony voices, William strumming a guitar and Henry singing into a beer bottle microphone. They got the idea to open “Fredbear’s Family Dinner” together while out at a county fair, when they saw a guy in a cheep pig costume trip over a child and just about died laughing. William built and designed the animatronics, and Henry handled all the business stuff. It was a passion project, and they were over the moon to see it come to fruition.

William and Henry were good friends, but their relationship wasn’t entirely healthy. Henry was the first person William connected with on an emotional level. They loved each other. And William became addicted to that love. Henry became his soul source of emotional fulfillment and he was terrified of loosing him. He would get jealous and bitter whenever Henry would hanging out with a new friend/girlfriend, even subtly trying to drive them away or sabotage the relationship. Henry knew that William loved him (probably more than most men love their platonic friends) and that William would get jealous over him, but he just chalked it up to William being lonely, and reminded oblivious to the true extent of the issue. William wouldn’t just get jealous over Henry though, he was also quite jealous of Henry. It didn’t go over William’s head that most people tended to defer to Henry when asking questions about their business, even if they were talking about his animatronics. It’s not that he wanted to talk to these people, he just hated being treated like he was less than Henry. He also hated that Henry didn’t seem to notice, or care. In reality, Henry was fine with taking all the questions because he knew William didn’t like talking to people, but in William’s insecure paranoid brain, he took it as Henry thinking he was better than him. William would have phases where he would convince himself that Henry secretly hated him and was just keeping him around because he felt bad, or just to laugh at him.

William got married mostly out of societal obligation. It’s not that he disliked his wife, Laura was friendly, pretty, submissive, everything a wife was supposed to be, it’s just that he never really wanted a wife. He had never connected with any woman he had tried to date, and realized pretty quick he had to sorta “fake it till you make it” when it came to romantic/sexual relationships with women. The idea of having to “fake it” for years wasn’t very appealing, but he recognized it was something he had to do to fit in amongst his peers. Laura started out as a waitress at the diner when it first opened, after a few weeks of observing her he decided she would be a good fit for the role. He would play the role of the loving bread winning husband, doing everything a husband is supposed to do to keep up the image, but emotionally he just wasn’t in it. This sucked for Laura of course, who felt emotionally neglected in their marriage. She thought that having children would bring them closer, and while it briefly succeeded in getting her more attention, things always went back to normal soon after.

While William wasn’t thrilled about getting married, he was happy about having kids. He viewed it as having the chance to give his kid the happy childhood he never had. William’s first child was Michael James Afton. It was a massive struggle at first, William liked kids but he couldn’t stand babies, but as Mike started getting older they actually got along pretty well. William always got along with children, they were less snobby and judgmental than adults, and they weren’t weirded out by his theatrical eccentric demeanor. William and Mike had a lot in common, they both loved sweets, they loved pranking Laura, and Mike loved the diner and William’s animatronics. Bummer was, as Fredbear’s got more popular, William became much busier, and he started spending less time at home. Mike didn’t handle this well and started acting out more and more at school and at home to get more attention. William was frustrated with his increasing workload and didn’t have the patience to be always dealing with the aftermath of his son’s latest scheme. Also, Mike’s embarrassing misbehavior was damaging the public persona William had worked so hard to build and maintain. People were judging him and he couldn’t stand it. He became a little too harsh with his punishments and rules as a result. Laura tried explaining that Mike probably just wanted attention, but William didn’t get it. Mike had rich parents, all the toys he could ever want, a group of friends, he had so much more than William had as a child so what was the problem?

Things got even worse for Mike when his little brother, Evan Joseph Afton was born. Laura stood up to William and demanded he be home more because she was not going to be raising two kids by herself. William offered to pay a nanny to help her out so he wouldn’t miss any work and she threw a frying pan at him, so he agreed to be around more, rather than go through the public humiliation of a divorce. Evan was a fussy baby, which was very annoying, but as he got older he mellowed out. He was still emotional, but also shy and quiet. He didn’t cause trouble, all he wanted to do was color and organize his toys. William liked Evan, he was sweet and so very innocent. Sure, it was a bit irritating how clingy he could be, but William reveled in having someone love him so deeply. He reminded William a lot of his mother. So soft and comforting. Mike hated Evan. The little brat was boring and a crybaby, so why did their dad like him more? What was so much better about him? Mike was dealing with a lot of teenage frustration and anger and he took it out on his little brother by bullying him relentlessly. It started small, stuff their parents laughed off as boys being boys, but it just kept getting worse and worse. Of course, their parents had jobs to get to, so they couldn’t always be there to stop it, but William did install security cameras after Mike “accidentally” pushed Evan down the stairs.

Evan’s death was horrific. His head was slowly crushed like a watermelon under a hydronic press. William was outside smoking with Henry when if happened, they ran inside when they heard Laura scream, just in time to see Evan’s limp body slide out of the animatronic’s mouth into a puddle of blood. Michael was ghostly pale as William screamed in his face, “WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED!? WHAT DID YOU DO!?” He threw Michael to the side and knelt to examine Even’s body. He was nearly headless, and very much dead. Blood continued to drip from Fredbear’s mouth, along with chunks of bone, brain matter, and brown curly hair. William raked his bloody trembling fingers through his hair. He was aware of the chaos going on around him, Laura pointlessly begging for someone to call an ambulance, parents ushering their crying kids outside, but it all felt so distant, like he was hearing them from underwater. Once he finally managed to tear his eyes away from the body, they landed on Mike, standing there with this stupid shocked expression on his face. William couldn’t help it, he pointed and laughed. He slowly approached Mike, laughing as Evan’s blood dripped from his face and hands, “are you happy now? ARE YOU FUCKING HAPPY NOW!?” William swung at Mike, cracking him across the face. Henry grabbed William from behind and began to pull him away, as he continued yelling.

William was losing it. He wasn’t a stranger to drinking or drug use, but it got worse after Evan’s death. His son was dead, and the passion project he built with his best friend was being shut down. Yeah, they had the Freddy Fazzbear locations, but Fredbear’s was different. It was something personal to Henry and him and now it was gone. He rarely even showed up to work anymore, he would always either be locked in his office or at Henry’s house. He could hardly look at Mike anymore, and god forbid one of his little goons showed up. He was in a bad place, and the hallucinations weren’t helping. After Evan’s death, William started seeing things. It started as just glimpses out of the corner of his eye, but they became more severe as time went on. Most often, he saw Fredbear, broken down and bloody. Usually he would be laying in a heap against the wall, other times he was more aggressive. The image wasn’t the thing that scared him though, it was the voice. It was little Evan’s voice, calling out, “It’s me!” “save me!” It was driving William mad, the thought of sweet Evan’s spirit being trapped all alone in a cold robot body. Fredbear wasn’t the only thing he’d see though, he’d see Mike, bloody and rotting with his intestines spilling out from his gut. William believed he knew what Evan was trying to tell him, but he didn’t know if he could go through with it. From there, the hallucinations just kept getting more disturbing and violent.

Michael was miserable. His brother was dead, his parents could barely look at him, his friend group was scattered, and the worst thing was he couldn’t even be mad about it because it was his fault. Things around the house were tense, to say the least. There was this creeping feeling of dread hanging in the air that got stronger as the days passed. One night, Michael was laying in bed trying to fall asleep when he heard his bedroom door creak open. He laid still, pretending to be asleep as footsteps approached him from across the room. He felt a presence standing over him, staring at him. His eyes were closed but he could feel someone watching him, and he was overcome with fear. He tried to calm himself, thinking it was probably just his mom coming in to check on him, but he knew it wasn’t his mom, the weight of the stare was too cold and hateful. The figure stood over him for what felt like hours as he lay frozen, more sure by the second that whoever was behind him was about to kill him. Finally, he heard quick footsteps exiting the room and the door closing behind them. Michael had been intimidated by his father before, but now he was terrified of him.

William’s relationship with Henry was on the rocks. William was borderline unrecognizable after Even’s death. He went from clingy to a full on stalker. Henry had noticed William’s declining mental health before, and he tried his best to be there for his friend, but his behavior was becoming more and more unpredictable and aggressive. It was starting to freak him out, as well as his young daughter Charlie. The final straw for Henry was when he was at William’s house and witnessed him having a violent meltdown where he blew up at Michael over seemingly nothing and yelled that he wanted him dead while swinging a kitchen knife around like a mad man. Henry managed to get the knife from him and calm him down, but he was horrified by the encounter. The next time William came over to his house, Henry refused to let him in. He let him know, in no uncertain terms, that their friendship/partnership was over. It hurt him to do, but he knew it was what had to be done. He loved William, but he was dangerous, and he had to do what was necessary to protect himself and his daughter. William freaked the fuck out. He was panicking, banging on the door begging Henry to let him in. He switched rapidly between sobbing and begging for forgiveness, and furiously yelling obscenities and threats, throwing potted plants and garden gnomes at the door in anger. William felt betrayed and abandoned. He believed that since he was in pain, he was automatically entitled to his friend’s sympathy and comfort, and he was furious that that wasn’t the case.

William went on a bender that night, aimlessly driving drunk through the heavy rain. The entire time he could hear bitter whispers in the back of his head, “he left you,” “he never loved you,” “you could never be good enough for him.” William couldn’t tell you why, but he ended up at “Freddy Fazzbear’s Pizza.” He didn’t plan it. He didn’t know that Charlie was there. He didn’t know that Charlie had gotten locked outside. It was a spur of the moment thing. Charlie recognized his car and turned to look at him as he stepped out. She could smell the alcohol through the rain, his hair was unruly and his eyes were red and glossed over, almost lifeless. He offered to give her a ride home, hoping Henry would let him in if he had Charlie. When Charlie refused, he got angry. He aggressively asked why she didn’t trust him, why she hated him, how she could be so ungrateful after everything he’s done for her. She became frightened as he began hobbling towards her, struggling to walk upright and using his car for support. She tried to back away, tried to turn and run when he reached for her, but he was too fast. He lunged forward, grabbed her by the throat, and squeezed until her body went limp. It took him a minute to process what he had just done. He looked down at her body, her face was blue and streaked with tears. On the floor next to her was her stuffed bear, Lefty. William had made that for her for her when she was a baby, and she carried it with her everywhere she went for years. The stitches were coming loose and one of the eyes was missing, it was falling apart, but it was well loved. His breath became ragged. He looked down at his hands, covered in small red scratch marks from Charlie’s nails. She always was a little fighter. “What have I done?”

Charlie’s body was found a little over an hour later. Henry felt the world cave in around him. He knew William had done it. The man who had been his best friend for years, someone he trusted, someone he loved, had just murdered his little girl. He strangled her and left her body out in the cold rain with the trash and rats. He was seeing red as he drove to William’s house in the early hours of the morning. He was pounding on the door demanding to be let in. When Laura opened it he stormed past her, breaking through the chain lock, and slamming her into a wall. He went on a rampage through the house, practically tearing up the floor boards looking for William. When it became obvious that he wasn’t there, Henry broke down crying, apologizing to Laura and Michael, who looked on terrified. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

William drove for hours before stopping at a seedy motel. He couldn’t stop looking at his hands. He was a monster, he had murdered a little girl, a little girl he’d known for her entire life, how could he do that? Was he that sick and twisted? He had had violent fantasies in the past, whenever people would insult him or aggravate him, but he never acted on them, because he knew it was wrong. He knew there was something vile inside him, and he had tried so hard for so many years to control it, but he failed, and there was no coming back from it. He had murdered his best friend’s daughter. “Well, he’s not your best friend anymore,” he reminded himself. “And now you’ll never get him back.”William sat on the motel bed, “guess he was right about you huh? You’re too broken to be saved.” God, he needed a drink, a cigarette, anything to make his brain shut up. “Why should you even care? Why care about his pain? He knew you were grieving and he abandoned you. He didn’t care about your pain, but he’ll understand it now. You evened the playing field. It’s only fare.” He had a point. Why should he care? Why should he care about Henry, or Charlie, or anyone? Everyone judged him and hated him his entire life. They would pretend to be nice and understanding, but it was all bullshit. When Evan died, people would come to him pretending to be so kind and sorry for his loss, but those same people would turn around and blame him, for building such a dangerous animatronic, or for raising Mike wrong, they were all lying two-faced snakes. They didn’t understand his pain, but they deserved to. Why should he be the only one that had to suffer? Why should he live this miserable life, full of pain and abandonment, while all these other assholes got to parade around with their stupid happy lives and stupid happy families? William thought of his son, Evan, trapped all alone in a decrepit robot suit. How was that fair? Why did it have to be him, and not some other kid? The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. He thought about how good it would feel to wipe the stupid smug smiles off their faces. Fuck, he’d stuff Mrs. Redmen’s brat son into an animatronic himself, just to see her ugly priss face go pale. Imagining it made him laugh. He knew it was awful, but who the hell cares? He's already going to Hell. “And wouldn't it be nice for little Evan to have some friends?” He laid in bed for hours, imagining the satisfaction that would come with inflicting his pain on the families of his pathetic town. “Why imagine? You just killed a little girl, you’ve got nothing left to lose?”

#my writing is pretty all over the place #so idk if this actually makes sense #this only acknowledges the first four games #because those are the ones I like #but i tried #william afton #springtrap #purple guy #five nights at freddy's #fnaf #henry emily #micheal afton #evan afton #mrs afton #charlotte emily #cw suicide

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viscountessevie · 1 year

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Former anon back again with Lorraine Heath recs okay so I am a chaotic little gremlin who doesn't read anything in order so I'll give you my favorite of her books and then if you're not chaotic like me my favorite series!

Waking up with the duke is a massive angst fest and I adore it! The Earl takes All aka the gorilla twins book is one of the wildest plots I've read in hr and it's gorg and also again angst fest literally made me cry. The Duchess Hunt is by far my favorite boss/employee hr it's the gold standard that all other boss books fail to live up to (do check triggers on this one tho!). And then my favorite series is the scoundrels of st James which is an older series of hers but I adore it esp the first two books. Very much Oliver Twist inspired which is hilarious. Also you're so valid for the Elizabeth Hoyt trigger stuff especially in the second half of the series some of the earlier books might work for you the (lol) Georgian Batman books are a lot less dark than the later ones iirc!

Can I just say I LOVED waking up to this message - especially the first part! While I am a choatic gremlin in life, I usually like reading in order. However, lately with HR I've been skipping around if I don't like some of the books in a series, especially if they are standalones without an overarching plot. Though through the Hellions series I have found myself loving books they tie themselves together.

All this to say, I'm not picky and bring on the chaos! Also all the titles you recced, I found it funny that on your previous ask, Caro (mermaidsirennikita) recced the same ones - yall have really similar tastes we love to see it! She, Triv and Z are my HR book influencers as I say below and I love them for it XD

Definitely adding these titles to my TBR and will live blog them when I start reading them!

As for The Duchess Hunt, I am usually not a fan of the Boss/Employee trope - it’s gotta be done right for me and not be a shady HR violation lmao but I liked how Sara Cate dealt with it in Praise and this book sounds really compelling! Funny story, I’ve actually seen reactions and commentary by Trivia and Z in our group chats and I was really interested in it. So definitely going high on my list. I’ve also heard of The Scoundrels of St. James and am into it but also so many books ahahha so we’ll see when I will get to them. I really need to start sifting through my TBR to see what I want to read next after Wanna Bet.

As for Hoyt, usually I am getting better with my triggers but also I am in a life slump so I am being more mindful of them than usual. Definitely interested in checking out the title Caro dropped - The Bodyguard with Whitney Houston changed my life and we love good disability rep so I am definitely down for that! The Georgian Batman books you mentioned also seem cool. Ngl I feel like this rn and I LOVE IT:

Thanks again for sending this in anon! Always feel free to gush about these books in my ask box - I love hearing about them even if I’ll get to them a while later lol

#HR Blogging #HR Book Recs #Lorraine Heath #Elizabeth Hoyt #Caro Tag #Trivia Tag #Zaira Tag #Chaotic Anon #The Viscountess Answers

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sonofcoulson · 1 year

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1845 Wolverine vol I

The following is inspired by the X-Men Origins: Wolverine movie and the Wolverine Origin comic. There seemed to be a consensus that the war montage was the best part of the movie, so in the It's All Connected universe each war segment is at least a big portion of a Wolverine movie, if not the movie itself. And so...we begin with James Howlett's traumatic transformation into Wolverine.

James Howlett (13 year old Hugh Jackman)

Dawson Logan (17 year old Liev Schreiber)

Rose (Of an age with Victor, actor tbc)

Act I

James is sickly, but likes to horse around with Dawg (nickname, from Dawson) who is the son of the groundskeeper, Thomas Logan. He also befriends Rose, an orphan, trainee housekeeper and companion for James. They all become fast friends as they grow.

Thomas keeps Dawg in line with violence his whole life.

Dawg talks about running away and says James and Rose should go with him. They'd be free. But James loves his family and is too sickly anyway. And Rose doesn't want to leave James. Dawg is a little hurt by this.

Thomas has been drinking more and more because he is harbouring a secret. He marched up to the house with a rifle and Dawg in tow telling his dad to calm down. His dad threatens him with violence, you can't hurt me anymore, remember Dad. He finds Rose and forces her to let him in the servants entrance. Dawg is adamantly opposed to his involving Rose and gets physical with his father so Thomas knocks him out.

James witnesses the confrontation and murder of the man he thought of as his father (John Howlett) by his biological father (Thomas Logan). Dawg rushes in trying to stop his dad.

Thomas kills John.

James's mutation is activated by anxiety as his biological father approaches, causing his boneclaws to emerge for the first time. James kills Thomas Logan (accidentally?).

Then (from the wiki)...'After Thomas died, (Elizabeth Howlett), horrified by James' mutation, cast her son out by calling him a freak as she questioned James as to what he was. Confused about what was happening to him, James flees (freezes in my version, Rose helps him flee and they run into the woods, with Dawg following behind them). After running away, Victor (still Dawg in my version) who was also a mutant with healing powers like James, caught up and overtook James. Victor (Dawg) said that they were brothers and vowed to stick together and that they would look after each other no matter what, eventually leading them to a life of rage and violence. As Victor (Dawg) was truly his own family, as they shared a father, James started going by the name "Logan"'

Dawg says 'somebody has to look out for my little brother' (even though they are actually half brothers) at some point. He obviously didn't care for his violent father.

They choose new names, Dawg becomes Victor Creed and James just takes the family name of his biological father, Logan, and they run to the middle of nowhere. Rose keeps the name Rose because she doesn't think they'll be looking for her.

Montage detailing how they survive in the wilds for a time, Vic and Logan going wild hunting, and how they eventually need money.

Act II

A few years later Victor and Rose have found employment but Logan has never found anything permanent.

Vic has become a horseman. Logan tries it and is no good at it. He tries several times and actually dies temporarily after being trampled, so Vic advises him to try something else.

Rose has gained steady employment in a mine, so he goes to seek work there.

He becomes a barrow boy, then a miner where his resilience and tenacity serve him well. Despite still physically being a teenager he can swing his pickaxe all day with just a few seconds of rest here and there.The foreman, Smitty(actor tbc), takes him under his wing, giving him a new job involving dynamite. But pathetic Cookie (actor tbc), the boss's former favourite, is jealous and bullies him. Logan goes wilderness hunting on his own, bringing the spoils back to camp. All in a montage.

Cookie secretly shortens the dynamite fuses to kill Logan, but he survives and saves a miner's kid and Smitty likes him even more.

Logan sees Smitty talking to Rose about leaving and needing money for the farm she wanted. He realises they've been in a secret relationship and is jealous.

Angry, Logan signs up for a fighting competition and his first opponent is Cookie. Logan still isn't strong like Vic, so he takes a beating but keeps getting up and slowly wears Cookie down then absolutely pummels him in the last few rounds, stopping the fight, struggling to resist the urge to pop the claws. His next opponent is Smitty, who needs the money to leave with Rose. The fight goes the same way, but Logan lets him win as he thinks he is a monster and Rose will be happy with Smitty.

Rose and Smitty leave, naming Logan as the new foreman.

He had been getting used to his new family unit and feels betrayed by them so refuses, wandering off into the wilderness, Rose calling after him.

Logan now hunts and fights for money.

Under Vic's tutelage, Logan becomes a good fighter and makes extra money off of it.

They learn that Vic (Dawson Logan) has been blamed for the murder of his father and the kidnap of James Howlett.

Act III

American Civil War (1861-1865) then follows Logan and Victor in the civil war. Vic and Logan kick ass. Logan finds all the death difficult, Vic is nonchalant.

They rescue Smitty's unit and fight alongside them. Smitty is killed. Logan receives Smitty's letter from Rose where she wonders and worries about James, obviously having shared the secret with Smitty.

He writes a letter back. He commiserates with Rose about Smitty in the letter, but tells her that James Howlett is dead.

Logan and Vic age around 1 year for every 10 calendar years. If Logan is 13 at the start of the movie, he would look 14/15 when war breaks out.

mid or post credits: Nathaniel Essex (actor tbc...Luke Evans?) finds En Nur Sabah's tomb after searching for years.

#wolverine #logan #sabretooth #victor creed #wolverine origins #X-Men Origins Wolverine #mcu #marvel cinematic universe #iac #it's all connected #marvel #wolverine volume I

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365days365movies · 2 years

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31 (Films) to Life: Once Upon a Time in America (1984) - Recap: Part Two

There’s still so...so much more movie to review.

So, to hell with it; no navel gazing, let’s get back into it!

SPOILERS AHEAD!!! Check out Part One for more!

Recap: Part Two

Back to old Noodles, at the Riverdale mausoleum that holds his old friends. And at this point, I have to say…why is the score composed of a pan-flute? Like…that’s definitely a pan-flute, right? It’s iconic and noticeable, but…why a pan-flute? Anyway, when he goes there, he finds that it’s been erected…by him? Ah, but this is a message, as a key is hanging from that placard, leading to the old locker they kept their money in as children. And lo and behold, it’s a briefcase full of money, labeled as an advance payment for his “next job”? The plot thickens.

Old Noodles walks through downtown, as a Frisbee unexpectedly flies towards him AND…back to 1930, and Noodles is released from prison. He’s greeted by a now adult Max (James Woods), complete with a hearse for his transport, and a sex worker in the back for…well, you know why, They head to Fat Moe’s, now a speakeasy run by the gang, who’ve gotten wealthy during the Prohibition.

Included in the gang is Patsy (James Hayden), Cockeye (William Forsythe), Fat Moe (Larry Rapp), and Peggy (Amy Ryder), all grown up and happy to see him. But perhaps most prominently is Deborah (Elizabeth McGovern), who’s surprisingly there to see Noodles post-release, and has been waiting for him since his arrest. She’s a dancer at the Palace Theatre, as she’d always wanted to be, and invites Noodles to see her there. There’s definitely a romantic tension there, so we’ll have to see how that goes, especially since she doesn’t approve of his criminal lifestyle and associations.

Speaking of criminal associations, we’re introduced to Frankie Monaldi, AKA the inevitable Joe Pesci role. Sort of amazing that he hasn’t appeared in a movie I review up until now, since…y’know, it’s Joe goddamn Pesci. Also appearing is Joe (Burt Young), who presents the boys with an opportunity: a diamond heist. They carry it out as planned, with the assistance of teller Carol (Tuesday Weld), whose involvement is…unclear. See, she lets them in, although it appears to be trickery on her at first, but it becomes apparent that she’s in on the scene. She also…fakes sexual assault by Noodles on her by actually having sex with him? I think it’s consensual…but even I’m not sure.

The boys deliver the diamonds to Joe, only to take them all out at the behest of Frankie, who wanted to take out the competition that Joe posed. Noodles balks at this, as he dislikes the idea of working for a boss, fearing the future consequences of getting in bed with Manoldi and other mobsters.

Back in the late ‘60s, the news is reporting on the attempted assassination of the Secretary of Commerce, amidst reports of government corruption. This includes an interview with a man named Jimmie O’Donnell (Treat Williams), whom Noodles recognizes. We cut back in time to the 1930s, where union workers Jimmie is being intimidated by Chicken Joe (Richard Bright), possibly under the command of the government. Rescued by Noodles and the gang, Jimmie reluctantly accepts protection from the mob.

This is undercut by the appearance of obviously corrupt police chief Aiello (Danny…Aiello), who’s taking interviews on various allegations of corruption, as well as celebrating the birth of a son. But with that son at the moment is the gang, who;ve snuck into the newborn unit of the hospital to…switch around the bassinets? That is insanely chaotic in the weirdest ways. And sure enough, Noodles gives him a call, revealing their plot: stop the cops from interfering with the unions, and they’ll undo the switch. A very clever and insidious plot, while also being…kinda funny, not gonna lie. At least, it WOULD be…if Patsy hadn’t lost the switch list. Ooooooh…oh, yeah, that’s absolutely fucked.

At the same time, we find out what the deal is with Carol. Turns out she’s…we’ll I guess she’s a very committed swinger? She’s married, and worked at the jewelry store as her side job, which means she…didn’t know about the robbery plans? She just ran with it, including the assault? Well, I guess it was…consensual? Jesus, this is a weird kind of problematic. After becoming reacquainted with the boys, she starts a relationship with…Max. Yeah, this lady is all kinds of confusing, gotta say. She recommends a threesome with Noodles, but he’s not into it.

Instead, Noodles goes back to his true love: Deborah. They go on a date in a nice restaurant, where they are the only customers. On this date, Deborah reveals that she does indeed care about Noodles, but is afraid of the parameters of their potential relationship, desiring a freedom and holding an ambition for Hollywood that she believes she could never achieve with Noodles. In fact, she’s going to Hollywood right after this, despite her feelings. And I gotta say…this is one of the better love interest characters I’ve seen in these movies. Like, she’s not a helpless waif, because she knows what she wants from Noodles and from life. However…it doesn’t end well…because Noodles rapes her.

Fuck. It’s, uh…it’s hard to watch.

Well, after that absolute fucking horror show, Noodles takes some time to reflect, Deborah leaves for Hollywood permanently, and I start to realize that I’m watching a movie about a bad person. Like…I mean, I knew that, because he’s killed multiple people and is part of a budding crime syndicate, but it’s been somehow lessened by De Niro’s acting and the circumstances Noodles has been in, but…yeah, no, he’s a bad person. And as he watches Deborah leave on the train to Hollywood, and Deborah gives him the “fuck you you piece of shit” eyes (understandably), we…cut to intermission?

Wait…really? We’re 70% through the movie, and NOW you let me go to the bathroom? That makes…no sense. I mean…OK?

See you in Part Three, I guess.

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detectivemaker · 5 months

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More info about Michael and his siblings: shared powers

every Royal Chimera family has a way to make people permanently obedient to them, this gaggle of Eternal servants are usually referred to as the chimera's harem(though their relationship to their chimeric master or mistress doesn't always have to be sexual), they're actually many bones to being a member of a chimera's halem, one such being you live as long as your master or mistress does, usually a chimera is Immortal until they partake in the act of creating children to take their place on the throne, after which they gain a lifespan of a non-climeric resident of the dimension, which is usually as long as a humans (many chimeric leaders rule for Generations until the instinctual desire to create errors finally becomes too much and they screw the nearest fertile creature they come into contact with)

another Boone is that you will keep your personality and sentience unless being commanded by your chimeric master or mistress, and if your chimeric lord has many forever servants you may be able to live Immortal but uncontrolled life, that is unless they like to boss you around personally

the servant is marked with their master or Mistresses personal emblem, be it an item the Chimera is fond of or an illustration of one of the components making up the chimera(ex, an illustration of the teeth the Chimera has or a body part like a paw)

the Mark is given via Flesh on flesh contact either by the Chimera or for half bunny chimeras by other people in their Harem making contact

William: Williams Mark is caused both by skin contact by him and Harem servants. It takes the form of a snake bite on the body, he doesn't really have a preference for who he makes his b****

Michael: Michael's Mark is only spread by skin contact and takes the same shape as his father's, he has a preference for people with a knack for mind control, his harem consists of people like mad mod, spellbinder, and a nine mind control proficient future member Jim Gordon Jr(he hasn't been marked yet but Michael's training him in the ways of villainy, until he believes he's old and trained enough to be a useful servant), he doesn't intend to do anything sexual with his harem, cuz he already has a husband(Jeremy) who's also part of his harem but his embossed around as much as the others, he does like to make them feed him grapes though

Peter: Peter's Mark is spread by skin contact by him and because he's also half bird a special song he created for himself, his Mark takes a shape of a bear's tooth, he has a preference for sad people who honestly would prefer to be mindless thralls that continue to be sad sacks, his Harem consists of people like Albert Wesker, Victor flies, James Craddock(James isn't a sad boy but Peter likes him because he's a Victorian and a spook, he's only able to be marked because Peter gave him a physical body using Arcane dark magic, James didn't know the body was a trap for him to be marked into a turtle servitude to Peter, not that he's able to rent his frustration at this trickery because now he's physically incapable of hurting Peter), he makes them listen to his decent but really depressing poetry and sleep together in a big cuddle pile

Elizabeth: Elizabeth's Mark is spread via skin contact by her and people already in her harem, she prefers people who she thinks are fun such as clowns or comedians, she doesn't have anyone notable from the Rogues Gallery under her thrall, but she does have a lot of circus performers, she keeps them in an eternal state of dance party, with occasional bathroom and food breaks, usually they dance themselves into unconsciousness and then start dancing again when they wake up

Philip(with an F): his Mark is spread by skin contact, and take the form of the outline of a fox's Dental system, he prefers buff dudes, his home consists of people like Bane, Killer Croc, and just a bunch of buff dudes, the days consist of mud wrestling, pirate stuff, and arm wrestling(completely nude obviously)

every Chimera Royal line also has familias, creatures created by a chimera's Pure Life Force

Michael: a set of Moon and Sun themed Jesters that wield any sort of weapon (mostly hammers or the occasional Acts) and usually spend their time amusing their Serpentine master with clown tricks

Peter: a giant golden ghost bear, that watches over its Master while he and his Harem sleep in the aforementioned cuddle pile

Elizabeth: an army of doll sized clowns that come in a lot of shapes and sizes, they have sharp teeth and usually weird very deadly tiny weapons

Philip(with an F): a sentient ship with fox legs that can levitate, and shoot beams of pure awesome(the way he describes it)

#michael afton #crying child #foxy bully #elizabeth afton #william afton #ocs #batman #oc lore

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imaginationintowords · 3 years

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Folklore [song series]

my tears ricochet

Modern Day AU! Bucky Barnes x Natasha Romanoff; Steve Rogers x OC!Reader

Plot: Inspired by Taylor Swift’s new album Folklore. The story follows the timeline of Bucky and Elizabeth’s life throughout the years

[warnings: death, and funeral]

word count: 4829

[a/n: sorry for such a long wait. I've been busy. I thought once I was done for the semester I would have a lot more time to work on my stories, but if anything my summer break has been more hectic. Just because I haven't been posting, doesn't mean I haven't been working on them. Just know that I am working on the new chapters for this and for TKWBA, just need a bit of patience from you all. Also thank-you for the continue love and support on all my work]

Series Masterlist

Tag list info here [if you want to be tagged please read this]

Age: 21

Year: Sep. 2015

Location: Brooklyn, NY & Stanford, CA

Elizabeth was sat at her desk doing her homework. She was anxiously waiting for Steve's call about the baby arriving. He had called her two hours prior to let her know that Natasha had gone into labor, and they were at the hospital. Steve told her that he'd call her as soon as he heard the news. She tried her hardest to focus on her homework, but she found herself constantly checking her phone for any updates.

Suddenly her phone started going off. She instantly picked it up and answered the call.

"Is the baby here?" She immediately asked.

"Liz," Steve choked out.

"Steve, what's wrong?" She could hear the distress in his voice.

"Natasha, she," he tried to say but the words got caught in his throat, and she could hear the soft cries.

"Steve, breathe," she tries to calm him down the best she could without actually physically being with him.

Elizabeth was simultaneously trying to keep herself calm, and not rush into any assumptions.

"She died," he said after calming himself down enough to tell her what happened.

"She died?"

"I guess there were complications, he tells her, still unsure of what exactly happened.

Steve hadn't thought to ask further into what exactly happened when Bucky's mom called to tell him the devastating news. He couldn't wrap his head around what she was telling him. He just never imagined that this would be the outcome of his best friend welcoming his first child into the world.

Steve clears his throat trying to force the lump back down.

"I'm catching the next flight out to New York," he tells Elizabeth, "I just gotta be there for Bucky."

"Yeah, of course," she says, completely understanding.

"I know you can't exactly fly out now, without letting your professors know, so as soon as I find out all the funeral," his throat catches at the word, he takes a small breath, "all the funeral information I'll let you know."

"Okay that works," she agrees.

"Okay. I haven't to pack real quick and get to the airport within the next hour," he tells her.

"Okay, I'll let you go."

"Wait, Steve," she calls out before he could hang up.

"Yeah?"

"I love you," she says with a shaky voice.

"I love you too, so much," he says, "I'll text you when I board the plane."

After one final goodbye, Steve hangs up the phone.

The flight seemed like Steve's longest one he's ever been on. As soon as he landed he quickly grabbed his carry on, the only thing aside from his backpack that he brought with him. Elizabeth had messaged him letting him know that she could bring more of his stuff once she flies out.

Steve made his way out of the airport to find his mom waiting for him by her car. He quickly made his way towards her and wrapping his arms around her.

On the drive to Bucky's apartment Steve sent Liz a text letting her know he landed. He then called Bucky's mom to let her know he was on the way.

"Thank-you for coming out Steve," Winnie thanks him, "The baby is just about to get discharged, we should be at the apartment before you get there."

"Of course, I'll see you guys soon," he says hanging up the phone.

Steve then sends a quick email to his boss and professors explains his absence and why he'll most likely be gone for a couple of weeks.

An hour later Steve's mom was stopping outside of Bucky's building.

"Let them know I'm here if they need anything," his mom tells him before he exists the car, "I'll come back at noon with lunch for everyone."

"Thanks Mom," he says leaning over to kiss her cheek.

Steve exists the car leaving his bags with his mom. He takes one final breath before walking to the front doors. Steve presses the call button for Bucky's apartment and was immediately buzzed in.

As soon as he reaches Bucky's door, he knocks quietly. The door opens and he's welcomed by Rebecca. He takes in the sullen face on the teenage girl.

"Hey Bec," he says.

"Hi," she quietly says, as they hug each other in the door way.

When they pull apart she steps aside letting him inside.

"It's just my parents and I here. Bucky didn't want to deal with a lot of people right now," she explains to Steve.

"Steve," he hears from his left, Keith, Bucky's stepdad makes his way out of the small kitchenette over to him, and embracing him, "Thank-you so much for coming. We know you're a very busy person."

Before Steve could respond Bucky's mom Winnie walks into the living room.

"Oh Steve," she immediately wraps her arms around him.

"Thank-you so much for coming on such a short notice," she says. Steve could hear the shakiness in her voice. He could tell she was trying to keep it together. No doubt the last 12 hours being the most stressful and emotional she's ever been.

"There's no need to thank me. This is where I need to be," he tells them.

"Let us at least pay you back for the flight," Keith says.

"No, don't worry about that," Steve waves him off, "I had a lot of miles that needed to be used."

"Well, thank-you again," Keith nods his head, understanding where Steve was coming from.

"You can go on ahead Steve. Bucky is waiting for you in the nursery," Winnie tells him, giving him an assuring nod, he nods back making his way towards the nursery.

The short walk seemed like it was much longer. Steve has never felt so nervous in his life. When he approaches the closed door, he softly knocks on it.

"Come in," Bucky calls from inside.

Steve walks in, closing the door behind him. He's immediately greeted by Bucky sitting in the rocking chair in the corner of the room, feeding his newborn daughter.

"Hey," Steve softly says, not sure what to say.

"Hey," Bucky greeted Steve with a sad smile.

It had been 12 hours later and it still didn't feel real to Bucky. The hospital had even offered the chance for him and Poppy to stay a couple of days, but all Bucky wanted to do was to go home and get away from the hospital. But now being back in the apartment without Natasha was surreal. He was trying his best to keep it all in, at least while the baby is awake and needs him.

He was determined in being the one that cared for her, even when his mom offered to take care of her for a few hours while he gets some rest. He assured her that he needed to do this. He had to do it alone, because he knew that soon enough it would just be him and Poppy.

Bucky was very grateful when he heard Steve was flying out. He felt like Steve was the only one he could really talk to about everything going on.

Steve was still standing by the door, just watching his best friend be a dad for the first time. He had no idea what to say in this kind of situation. The words were caught in his throat the moment he actually saw Bucky.

"Thanks for coming," Bucky says breaking the silence. Steve immediately looks away from the baby to meet Bucky's eyes.

"You would've done the same thing," Steve says, "And like I've said before, I'll always be here for you."

"I don't care how far, I'll always be on that first flight to you," Steve continues, he glances down at the now sleepy baby, "You're my brother Buck."

There was a moment of silence between the young men. Both understanding what the other one means with such few words.

Steve watched as Bucky gently placed the sleepy baby on his shoulder to burp her.

"It suits you," Steve quietly remarks.

"What?" Bucky looked up at him confused.

"Fatherhood, it suits you," Steve says again, stepping closer to his friend.

"You think?" Bucky looks back down at the now sleeping baby.

"Yeah. I know it's only been less than a day, but you look natural. Make it look easy."

"Thanks," Bucky smiled, getting up for the he chair and walking over to the crib to gently place Poppy in.

Steve walked over, standing next to Bucky, watching the little one sleep peacefully.

"What's her name?" Steve whispered, realizing that he hadn't found out what the name of the baby was.

"Poppy James Barnes," Bucky proudly says.

"That's cute," Steve commented, he placed his right hand on Bucky's left shoulder and gave it a squeeze.

Bucky looked over at Steve and they both nodded their heads in agreement, before falling into an embrace.

"I am so sorry," Steve quietly says.

"It happened so quick, she barely even got to see the baby," Bucky quietly cried into Steve's shoulder, "I never even thought of this would be the outcome. I never imagined I'd be coming home solo with the baby."

Steve tightened his embrace on Bucky, just listening to his friend.

"I don't know how I'm going to do this Steve. I don't know how I'm going to raise her without her mom. I'm trying to keep it together to not worry my mom, but fuck Steve, I don't know what I'm doing. I'm scared I'll screw this all up. I'm scared I'll screw her up.

"I'm so scared Steve," Bucky cries.

"It's okay to be scared," Steve tries his best to comfort Bucky, "I'd be more concerned if you weren't scared. This is entirely new territory for you. You're raising a child, a child who unfortunately no longer has her mother. That alone is a fucking terrifying thing to go through.

"It's not going to be easy. There's no point in lying to you, and saying it will. You and I both that won't be the truth. But if there's anyone I know who could do this, it's you Buck. You're the strongest person I know. Whatever has happened before this doesn't matter. The only thing that matters now is that little girl. And I know damn well you're going to give her the best life she will ever have," Steve pulls away from Bucky and holds onto his shoulders.

"And you're not alone in this. You have a lot of people who care about you, and now Poppy. You will never be alone. You'll always have someone to call, someone to help you. You're crazy to think we would ever leave you to do this alone. We're here, and we're not going anywhere. You and Poppy will never have to be alone. She might not have her mom, but she's got you, and I know damn well you won't ever let her wonder what being without one parent truly feels like.

"You've got this Buck," Steve assures him, "And we're here every step of the way."

"Thanks Steve," Bucky sniffles, wiping the tears away.

"No need to thank me," Steve smiles, "Now why don't you go take a nap. Get some rest. We're here if Poppy wakes up."

"Yeah I could use some sleep," Bucky yawns, his adrenaline from the last 12 hours fading away.

Steve walks Bucky to his bedroom and watches as he gets into his bed, and quickly falls asleep. He quietly closes the door behind him, with the baby monitor in one hand checking to make sure Poppy is still asleep.

He walks back into the living room, placing the monitor by the tv for everyone to see and hear.

"They're both asleep," Steve announces to the room.

"Oh thank goodness," Winnie sighs, "James hasn't taken a moment to rest since everything happened."

"Knowing Bucky, we'll probably have to be forcing him to rest for the next couple of weeks," Steve says.

"I just got off of the phone with Natasha's father," Keith said walking back inside the apartment.

"What did he say?" Winnie asked.

"He said that the funeral is all up to us," Keith sighs, "Something about how Natasha made her own path with getting pregnant, and that once she left she was no longer his responsibility."

"He really said that?" Winnie asked mortified.

"I'm afraid so," Keith sighed, "I tried reasoning with him saying we would handle everything financially and he can come to the funeral but he said no."

"What kind of father doesn't show up to his own daughter's funeral," Winnie shakes her head in complete disbelief.

"Explains why Natasha was the way she was," Rebecca whispered, so that only Steve could hear her.

He reluctantly agrees.

Two weeks later

Elizabeth was helping Steve with his tie in his childhood bedroom. She had flown in yesterday for today's funeral services. Elizabeth had gotten in late last night, so she still hasn't seen Bucky or Poppy yet. She was a let to get a week off of work and her professors gave her an extension on her assignments when she explained to them what happened.

"I still can't believe Natasha's dad isn't going," she says as she straightens out Steve's tie.

"Bucky's mom is still holding out hope that he shows up," Steve says.

"What does Bucky think of it all?" Elizabeth asks.

"He's not worrying about it," Steve explains, looking over himself in the mirror, "His only concern right now is Poppy and only Poppy. If Nat's dad shows up then he does. But as of now Bucky has made the decision that he will not be in Poppy's life. Not until he proves himself."

"That's very mature," she says grabbing her purse.

"This Buck is like a whole new one you've never seen before. Fatherhood has made him a thousand times more grown up these last couple of weeks."

"That's good."

"Ready to go?" Steve asked her, grabbing the keys to his mom's car.

"Yup," Elizabeth says following Steve out.

Bucky had asked Steve to pick him and Poppy up, and Steve had of course agreed.

They arrived to Bucky's apartment in fifteen minutes. Walking up to Bucky's door they could hear a lot of commotion coming from inside. Steve used the key Bucky gave him to let himself and Elizabeth in.

As soon as they walked in they were greeted by the sounds of a baby crying.

"Buck?" Steve called out.

"We're in here," he calls from the nursery.

They go to the nursery to find Bucky looking frazzled while trying to change Poppy's diaper.

"I'm so sorry. I'm running so behind," Bucky tells them, glancing over his shoulder quickly,

"Poppy didn't sleep well last night. And nothing I've tried has been working."

"It's okay Buck, just take your time," Steve calmly says.

"I still need to shower, shave, and get dressed," Bucky rambles, "She's going to need another change of clothes because she spat all over herself, and my mom only bought this one outfit for today."

"Hey Bucky, calm down," Elizabeth calmly spoke up, placing her hand on his back, "Take a breath."

Bucky felt the warmth and comfort from Liz's touch. He listens to what she says and takes a deep breath.

"Okay good," she says, "now you go get ready. Steve and I got this."

"Okay," he nods his head, handing the baby over to Elizabeth, "thank-you."

"Of course," she softly smiles at him, "now go get ready."

Bucky quickly makes his way out of the room and into his own to get ready.

Elizabeth looks down at the small baby in her arms. She could see so much of Bucky in the baby with hints of Natasha. It was a little strange for her to be holding Bucky's baby and it not being her baby as well. Not that she ever wanted to get back together with Bucky, because she didn't. There was just a little voice in her head, that of her teenage self, saying how it was supposed to be them, doing this together.

She quickly shut the voice down.

Elizabeth was incredibly sympathetic of Bucky's situation. All she wanted to do was be there for him, as a friend. She wanted Bucky to succeed as a father, and she would do what she could to make that happen.

Steve silently watched Elizabeth watching Poppy. He couldn't really read her expression. He hates to admit it to himself, especially with everything going on, but he was slightly worried about how Liz would react to all of this. He had faith in their relationship, of course he trusted her immensely. But he still couldn't help but feel like she might decide to leave him for Bucky. Elizabeth turned around to see Steve looking at her with a distant look in his eyes.

"You good?" She gently asked, breaking him from his self-destructive thoughts.

"Yeah. You?"

"Yeah," she nods her head, handing the baby over to him, "I'm going to try and find her a new outfit.

"Okay," Steve says sitting down with the baby.

"I love you," Liz quietly says to Steve, knowing what could possibly going through his mind, if hers was also wandering.

"I love you," Steve replies back, finding himself relaxing at just hearing those three words, any doubt slipping away.

30 minutes later Bucky was ready to go. He walked out to the living room where he found Steve and Elizabeth sitting with each other holding the baby. He paused for a moment taking in the scene in front of him. He felt a sense of warmth and low flow through him as his closest friends admire his daughter. In that moment he knew he had made the right decision in what he would tell them next.

Steve glanced up to see Bucky leaning against the frame of the hallway.

"Ready?" Steve asked.

"Yeah, but I actually wanted to ask you two something before we go," Bucky says walking over and sitting on a chair next to the couch.

"Sure, what's up?" Steve leans forward, leaning on his knees, giving Bucky his full attention.

Elizabeth tears her eyes away from Poppy to also give Bucky her full attention. She smiles at him, letting him know he could continue on.

"I first and foremost just want to thank you Steve, for what probably is the hundredth time," Bucky says, "I know you have a lot going on with work and school. So I really appreciate everything you've done for me and for Poppy. And you too Elizabeth, I know you're incredibly busy especially with law school prep. And with everything that's happened between-"

"Don't," she stopped him, "What's past is past."

"Well anyways, thank-you," Bucky says, "Now here comes what I wanted to ask you two. There's no other two people I wouldn't trust more with Poppy. So I wanted to ask if you would be her godparents?"

"Really?" Elizabeth asked taken back by Bucky's request.

"Yes," he nods his head, "There's no one else I wouldn't trust with her if anything happens. It'll help me sleep better knowing she'll have two people who'll love her like I would. Two people who have so much love between them, that I know will always be together."

Both Steve and Elizabeth were taken back by Bucky's last statement. They knew Bucky had accepted their relationship, but to actually have him not only say it out loud but to practically give them his blessing, it meant the world to the couple.

Steve and Elizabeth both share a look with tears glistening in their eyes. Elizabeth nods her head.

Steve turns back to Bucky, "We'd be honored to be Poppy's godparents."

Elizabeth and Steve stood up to hug Bucky. All filled with a wide range of emotions. Bucky felt a huge sense of comfort after asking Liz and Steve to be Poppy's godparents. He knew he made the right decision, and he knew he could now sleep better at night knowing his daughter would be taken care of. And by two people he knows can love her the way he does.

After what happened with Natasha, Bucky just wanted to make sure Poppy would be taken care of. If she couldn't have her parents, then she would have the closest thing to having parents. And Bucky knows Steve and Elizabeth would be amazing parents.

That alone allowed him to be at peace for whatever may happen.

Arriving to the funeral location Bucky felt his nerves start to spike. He sat in the backseat looking out the window at the familiar faces walking into the chapel.

"You okay?" Elizabeth asked turning in her seat, after Steve parked the car.

"I don't know if I can do this," he mutters, glancing towards the sleeping baby in the car seat next to him.

"We'll be right next to you along the entire way," Liz calmly says.

"If you feel too overwhelmed we'll leave whenever you want," Steve tells him, "We won't stay if you absolutely can't handle it. No one will hold it against you."

"Okay," Bucky takes a deep breath.

"Stay here, I'll get the stroller out," Steve says, getting out of the car.

"No one is expecting you to be brave, Buck," Elizabeth says, "You're allowed to be vulnerable. You're allowed to show emotions."

He nods his head, taking in what she's telling him.

He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small necklace. Clutching onto it as if his life depended on it.

Elizabeth catches the small 'N' on it, realizing that that was the necklace Natasha wore everyday since she was 13.

Bucky takes one final deep breath, trying to calm his nerves.

"Okay, I'm ready," he tells her.

"Okay, let's do this."

Bucky was grateful that they arrived only minutes before the service started. Everyone was already seated in the pews.

He slowly walked down the aisle pushing the stroller, Steve and Elizabeth walking right behind him.

Bucky tried his best to avoid any eye contact with everyone. He couldn't bare to look at the pity in their eyes.

He caught sight of his family siting in the second row. He also noticed a man sitting alone in the first row.

He instantly knew who it was.

Once Bucky reached the first row, the man made to movement to greet Bucky.

Bucky cleared his throat, "Mr. Romanoff."

The older man looked over at Bucky, then at the stroller.

"James," he stiffly said, turning his attention back to the front.

Bucky awkwardly sat down placing the stroller next to his legs, away from Natasha's father, while Steve and Elizabeth sat next to Bucky.

The service was going smoothly up until the priest announced that Natasha's father would be making a speech, catching everyone off guard.

Bucky looked at the older man as he walked up to the stand. He turned around to face his mom, "Did you know this?" he whispered.

"No I didn't," she shook her head.

Right as Mr. Romanoff was about to start speaking, Poppy began to cry. Bucky quickly went to get her out of the stroller, while Steve quickly went to grab a bottle to help him out.

As soon as the baby calmed down Mr. Romanoff began to speak.

"First and foremost, I want to thank everyone for coming," he begins, "I really appreciate it. Natasha would be eternally grateful for all of you."

Bucky started to get annoyed by the beginning of Mr. Romanoff's speech. As if the man didn't turn down the invitation for the last two weeks. Now he's trying to act like the perfect father, as if he didn't kick her out and cut off his pregnant daughter.

"Natasha was a kind hearted person. Only wanting the best for those closest to her. She was the most selfless person you would have ever met," he continued on with his speech.

Elizabeth couldn't help but be confused by Mr. Romanoff's speech. She hated thinking ill of the dead, but that man had no idea who his daughter truly was.

"Natasha was so smart, earning her way into Yale. She was only months away from graduating. I was so incredibly proud of her. If only we would've gotten the opportunity to watch her walk across the stage.

"Other than leaving an everlasting impression on all of us, she also left behind a part of her. Her last moments on Earth was spent bringing in another Romanoff," he says.

Bucky's head snapped up to Mr. Romanoff, then towards Steve.

"Romanoff?" Bucky whispered, "This man has the fucking nerve."

"Ignore him," Steve whispered back, trying to calm Bucky down, "He's just saying all of this to make himself look good."

"Natasha brought her daughter into the world," Mr. Romanoff continued, forcing fake tears to fall, "I remember being by her side as she was in labor."

Bucky clenched his jaw, forcing himself not to call Mr. Romanoff out on his lies.

"As she was dying," Mr. Romanoff paused for dramatic effect, "Her only request was to name her daughter after her."

Steve paled his hand on Bucky's shoulder, trying his best to calm him down. It was too late, Bucky was already placing Poppy in Steve's arms.

"What a fucking lie," Bucky stood up shouting at Mr. Romanoff, causing everyone to gasp.

"James," Mr. Romanoff said through gritted teeth, as a warning.

"How could you just lie to all these people?" Bucky shouted, "How could you lie as if you didn't disown Natasha months prior when she told you she was pregnant. Or when my parents kept inviting you to the funeral, you kept saying no and how Natasha's decisions led to their death. How dare you say you were in the delivery room. As if you didn't have her number blocked. My mom and I were there when things took a horrible turn. We were there when the doctor walked out and told us Natasha didn't make it. Not you! Us!

"Then you go on to make some shitty story about Nat's last words. Which is completely false. Natasha never wanted to name the baby after herself, you'd actually know that if you were actually present in her life. But you weren't. And you sure as hell will never be a part of your granddaughter's life."

Bucky turned to Steve and Liz, "Let's go."

They nodded their heads and helped put Poppy in the stroller. They followed Bucky as he walked out of the chapel.

After leaving the funeral services, Steve was able to calm Bucky down. Winnie had called Elizabeth to let her know that the burial services the next day were officially going to be private. Liz agreed that that'd be best for everyone involved. Especially with what happened during the funeral services.

The burial service was only attended by Bucky, and his family, along with Elizabeth and Steve.

Everything went along smoothly. Everyone giving Bucky the safe space to grieve.

After the burial, everyone gave Bucky a few moments alone at the grave site so he can say his final goodbyes.

"Hey Nat," he pauses taking a deep breath, "these last two weeks haven't been the easiest. But boy have they been amazing. I may be more exhausted than I've ever been, but boy is she worth it.

"She may only be two weeks but I can already tell she's going to be the most amazing person ever," he softly cries, "You would've loved her so much. But like I promised back at the hospital, she'll never not know who her mother was. I will always make sure she knows who you were. Always."

"Goodbye Natasha," he whispered, before walking away to join his family waiting.

Age: 26

Location: Brooklyn, NY

Year: 2020

"Daddy, what's this?" Poppy calls out to her father from his bedroom.

"What's what petal?" He asked walking into the room, finding her surrounded by boxes, as they prep for their move uptown.

"This," she holds up the small necklace with the 'N'.

Bucky kept that necklace in a small box in his nightstand. He kept it at the bottom of his nightstand for safe keepings. Planning on one day to give it to his daughter. He always planned to wait until she was 16, but he figures now is as good as ever.

"That was your mommy Natasha's," he said walking over to her, and sitting next to her on his bed, "She got it when she was 13, and wore it every day up until when she died."

"It's pretty," she says admiring it in her hands.

"It is isn't it," he smiles at his little girl, "It's now yours."

He grabs the necklace from her little hands. He unclasps it, then gently moves her dirty blonde hair to the side. He places the necklace around her neck, and clasps it shut.

"Thank-you daddy," she smiles brightly at her father, admiring the necklace that now lay on her chest.

Bucky smiled at his daughter, watching as she kept admiring the necklace. It was a little big on her, but he knew she would grow into it.

"Anything for you baby," he kisses the top of her head, "Anything."

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tatestripedsweater · 3 years

Text

Put On A Show

Plot: James is apart of a ‘gentleman’s club’ that caters to the wealthy and the extremely horny

James x Fem!Reader

Word count: 2.1K

Warning: Public Sex, Cheating,

A/N: This idea came into my mind, but I promise I am working on my other requests! I just had to share this!

Men often didn’t admit that they came here, in fact half of them were married with children. But as soon as the light hit the stage and the girls started dancing it was almost as if they forgot about their families at home, the smell of tobacco and whiskey filled the red walls of the gentleman’s club. It was a smell you had grown used to over the years working here.

You could hear the chatter and clink of glasses from behind the stage while you got ready for tonight’s show, the black dress you wore was just above your thighs which gave a slight view of your ass. It wasn’t modest and you wouldn’t be caught dead wearing outside of this place, but here it made you feel like a goddess, something to be marvelled at.

‘’Y/N don’t forget to shake those hips of yours!’’ A laugh left your lips as you looked over at your boss, she was a middle aged woman with the sex drive off a teenage boy but she had retired from this type of work so decided to manage the place instead.

‘’You should join me!’’ You couldn’t help but smile at the blush that crept up on her skin, she was beautiful for her age and half the men in the club thought she was one of the dancers. Smiling softly she left you and the others to get ready, you were the youngest of the bunch but still beautiful, most men that that came in often paid for a private dance within one of the rooms upstairs. But that was saved for the most wealthy men, not just anybody.

As soon as you heard the jazz music starting you had to cut the conversation short, you and the other girls got on stage while the curtains were still closed. Some girls fixing their hair last minute or making sure their dresses were neat and tidy before getting into position, as soon as the curtains opened there was a roar of applause and some wolf whistles among the men. But you noticed out of the corner of your eye that there was a men that didn’t do either of the two, he just looked up on the stage and as soon as his eyes met yours a smirk graced his features. He was beautiful, and by the way he presented himself you could tell he was rich.

The music started to get a bit more upbeat, a few girls stayed on stage dancing but a few girls (yourself included), had to get of stage to ‘entertain’ the men off LA even further while they watched the show. You watched as one girl was almost instantly pulled down onto her knees between a gentleman’s legs and another being pulled over another’s lap for a spanking.

‘’Come sit on my lap’’ Turning around you could tell that the instruction was directed at you, the man that had caught your eye as soon as you had gotten on the stage. You couldn’t help but notice a wedding band on his finger, but non the less you did as told and straddled his legs. The wedding right didn’t even faze you, as much as you hated to admit it, you often entertained men that were already married, some came here because their wives couldn’t satisfy them at home and well others.. wanted something a little bit more adventurous than just making love in the bedroom.

James didn’t often come to such establishments as this, but after finding out that his wife had tried to get rid of the sole heir of his he couldn’t help but feel anger towards the woman. So having heard about this place was his revenge, even if she didn’t truly love him it would still hurt her image if anyone found out her husband had cheated on her with a whore, that he had fucked the life out of a woman in front of others that were here for similar reasons.

Watching him put the cigarette out his hands soon pulled down the top of your dress until your breasts were exposed, you couldn’t help but blush darkly as you heard a few wolf whistles from the other men that were getting their cock sucked. James’ warm hands cupped your breasts before soon pulling at your nipples, which made a squeal leave your lips as he did so. You could feel him getting harder between your legs, and it didn’t help that you weren’t wearing any underwear either. That was a clear instruction off of your boss.

‘’What’s your name darling?’’ Men here didn’t usually care about the woman they were going to fuck, in fact non of them had ever asked for your name before. You debated on wether you should give him your name or not, but not seeing no harm in doing so you told the man as you looked over at him. ‘’A beautiful name, for a beautiful woman.’’ Just as he spoke you felt his hand move up to your throat, tightening it ever so slightly but it wasn’t enough to make you stop breathing, but it was enough to make sure you knew who was in charge.

‘’T-Thank you sir’’ You were taught as soon as you came to work here that that’s how you addressed the men that came into the club, unless specified otherwise by the men themselves. A chuckle left James’ lips once you called him that, shaking his head slightly he spoke once more as he kept his hand around your throat.

‘’It’s Mr March to you dear’’ Humming so he could tell you understood, a growl almost like a wild animal came from his mouth as soon as James’ other hand slipped up and between your legs, your wetness coating his fingers. You felt his fingers start to tease your hole, James thumb running your clit in slow circles to tease you. ‘’Look at how wet you are already, and I’ve barely touched you yet’’ His taunting tone made your cheeks blush red, the sounds of the other men and woman moaning within the room only added to your arousal.

A loud moan poured out of your mouth as you felt two of his fingers fill your greedy cunt, the sounds of your cunt and the other noises of people getting fucked had your clench around his fingers almost instantly. As James’ fingers thrust inside you faster, he pulled your face closer to his by your throat, his hot breath stroking your face as he did so.

‘’After this, I’m going to fuck you until you’re the loudest one in here!’’ With James’ fingers still inside you, he had them make a ‘come here’ motion before adding pressure to your clit. ‘’Look at you, you’re such a desperate little whore, willing to let any man use and fuck you as he wishes’’

He wasn’t wrong, you loved your job and the fact that you got orgasms (sometimes) was an added bonus. The girl behind you had her legs up and over another males shoulders as he pounded her against the table, James noticed you watching and soon enough added a third finger to stretch your cunt even further. Crying out loudly as soon as you felt him fill you up with even more, James could feel his cock straining against his trousers, it was almost painful but he would endure it just to see you whimpering for him. You may be on top of him but you weren’t the one dominating , he had utter over your body.

‘’You think this filling your cunt, just wait till my cock is inside you!’’ Just the very thought of this man using you for his pleasure had your thighs shaking, no man had ever given it to you like this. They often only cared about their pleasure and you half expected James to have you on your knees as soon as he saw you get off the stage. He could tell you were right on the edge, your cunt was practically dripping all over him and his trousers but James didn’t care, even if he knew he had to explain this to Elizabeth when he got back to the Cortez.

‘’Are you going to cum?!’’ Whining you nodded as best as you could with his hand choking you, James’ fingers stroked along the spot where no man had ever gotten before. You had heard rumours off such a thing.. the G-Spot, as soon as his fingers rubbed against it you were screaming like someone was getting murdered, but intact all you were doing was shaking against James as your orgasm overtook you. It felt like you were going to pass out, you haven’t felt a sensation so intense as this. ‘’That’s it.. let it out dear!’’ Grinding your fingers against his hand to ride out your own orgasm, you panted softly. If this man was going to come back to the club at a later date you certainly doing to call dibs on him.

A whine of protest left your lips as the empty feeling took over you once James removed his fingers and hand from your throat, almost instantly he had moved you so you were on all fours, your front half leaning against the side of the velvet sofa. Your eyes met another girls as a male had been fucking her from the moment she got off stage, she looked absolutely exhausted. A look of sympathy was evident in her eyes as soon as she saw James pull off his trousers and briefs, you didn’t even need to ask if his cock was big because she almost looked scared for you.

As soon as you felt his cock teasing your hole you felt your legs quiver, James’ hands gripped onto your waist as he soon thrusted his cock inside you. Now you understood why the girl across from you looked so scared, he filled you up perfectly. Crying out loudly, James didn’t even give you chance to get used to his side, you were wet enough in his opinion. With his nails digging into the skin off your hips and his balls hitting against your clit with each thrust, you both were in euphoria.

‘’F-Fuck.. Mr March!’’ A grunt fell from his lips as soon as you called him that, you felt like his cock was tearing you in half but at this point you didn’t even care. He was the only man that had cared about your pleasure just as much as his own, maybe even more.

James only answered with another hard thrust, it was like all his aggression was coming out and that he was using it against you, but honestly you didn’t even mind at this point. His skin slapped against yours with each thrust, and each thrust had a moan fall from your lips. James could feel just how wet your cunt was against his cock, you were clearly making a mess but he was going to make you clean up his cock afterwards, but right now all he wanted was to pound into you until you couldn’t take anymore.

‘’D-Don’t stop!’’ Oh he had no intention of stopping, at this rate he was going to stay here for the night. The girl across from you had been forced into a new position and the very thought of your legs being forced behind your legs had you tighten around him almost instantly, James watched them as he fucked you and could tell he’s have your in the exact same position moments to come after this.

‘’Do you get off on watching other people fuck dear?’’ All you could do was nod and whimper in response as his thrusts got somewhat sloppier, you had noticed that men often lost their rhythm with their thrusts once they grew closer and closer to their orgasm. Just the very thought of James cumming inside you had your cunt tighten almost instantly, the risk of pregnancy was something you were willing to take and half the girls in here had babies off men they never saw again.

Pushing your face further down into the material of the sofa, you couldn’t help but scream loudly as you came around his cock. You felt tears fall from your cheeks at the sensation, a sob escaped your lips as your orgasm over took your body once more. Your vision started to get slightly blurry but it wasn’t enough to make you loose conciseness but just enough to make you feel hazy, James hips came to a halt as his cum soon filled up your cunt. Groaning loudly he held you there so you took every last drop,

You couldn’t even comprehend anything until you felt his cock leave your cunt, cum dripping down your thighs as he did so. Running his hand over the cum that coated you, he slipped his fingers back inside you to make sure not a single drop of his cum was wasted.

‘’Get on your back darling, I’m not done with you yet’’

#american horror story #american horror story gifs #ahs gifs #ahs #ahs imagine #american horror story imagine #ahs imagines #ahs hotel #american horror story hotel #james march #James March imagine

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nerdasaurus1200 · 2 years

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Corona Citizens Part 6

At last, we’re finally on the nobility of Corona!

Baron Alwyn Postar, Godwin’s brother. He and Godwin were both Frederic’s caretakers when he was growing up.

The man on the left right next to Caine is Count Toby Howards. He’s Arianna’s cousin. Next to him is Lieutenant Calvin Howards; Toby’s father and Arianna’s Uncle. He’s an old War Vet, and has finally recently come back home from aiding the English against their many rebellions. We already know Elizabeth Van Hoskins, but I’ll give her a bit of backstory. She’s Arianna’s Grandmother and originally she just planned to just stay in Corona for Rapunzel’s coronation, but she ended up staying to witness all the shenanigans the Princess gets into because she’d never met a noble that wasn’t dull before. Next to her is Duchess Victoria der Sonne. She’s Frederic’s paternal Great Aunt. And then of course we know General Jimmy Carver the Third. He fought alongside Calvin in the Rebellions, and is Frederic's brother.

The people on the left are Viscountesses Lyanna, Anastasia, and Albertina. The man with them is Count Bernhold, another one of Frederic's brothers. Anastasia is his second wife, but he’s having an affair with Lyanna. Word about the affair is very hush hush but they are publicly getting a divorce.

The people on the right are Earl Gilbert Der Sonne (Frederic’s cousin), Baroness Carlota, Lady Evelyn, and Baron Lars Howards. Carlota is Bernhold’s first wife, and she has a lover back in France. Lars and Gilbert are both potential suitors for Evelyn, but they have a secret affair with each other.

The woman sitting next to Gilbert in this shot is Countess Geraldine, Anastasia’s older sister. The original plan was for her to marry Count Bernhold, but then word got out that she was sleeping with their father’s squire so as punishment she got stuck in a different marriage.

The two men there are Baron Sven von Steuben, Lars’s brother, and Duke Bertram. Bertram is Lars and Sven’s Uncle. The woman next to him is Lady Henrietta, Anastasia and Geraldine’s older sister. The blonde next to Cassandra is Lady Helene, Evelyn’s sister.

This is Countess Lana Howards, Toby’s wife. They had an arranged marriage when they were young, but they grew to have a deep and genuine love and respect for one another.

The woman in the back behind Lady Henrietta is Duchess Matilda, Albertina’s sister. She’s engaged to Sven, but neither of them are happy about it.

The two women with big oval shaped hair in the background and foreground are Duchesses Milicent and Ramona, Frederic’s sisters. Milicent is married to Bertram, but their relationship is a bit rocky cause she recently discovered he has a mistress and a bastard in France. However, they’re even because she had an affair during their engagement.

The little boy in the blue jacket is James Rutherford Carver the fourth, James the third’s son. All the palace staff calls him Jimmy, which he much prefers to his actual name. He actually really hates being a noble. He doesn't see why he can't be a normal kid and have fun, and why his father has to stay away and fight a war that isn't even Corona's business to begin with.

The boy next to him is Gideon. He's Bernhold's and Anastasia’s son. To sum it up, he is as bratty as they come. He CONSTANTLY acts out because it's the only way he can get his father's attention. He also is pretty much in denial of his parents' divorce. Half the time, he acts like Lyanna doesn't even exist. Also, he LOVES to boss around the castle staff and try to taddle on Faith and Cassandra. Crowley, Cap, Arianna, and Ethel are the only ones that can get him to behave. However, he calms down a lot and is actually a pretty good kid when his father isn't around.

The little girl is Analise. She's as girly girl as they come. She loves flowers and tea parties and pretty dresses. And every single tea party she throws, Gideon, Jimmy, and the handmaidens HAVE to attend. She's the one noble kid that actually gets overlooked a lot. Not just because she's a girl though. There's actually a lot of speculation on her heritage. Everyone knows for a fact that she's Willow's daughter, but no one really knows who the father is.

The nobles' stay in Corona is always on and off, but no matter what the kids are always left in the castle. As far as the three of them are concerned, the Corona palace always has and always will feel like home.

Unfortunately, a lot of these nobles died during Cassandra's attack at the Goodwill Festival. They were hiding in the castle, but she hunted them down and found them one by one. Zhan Tiri even got a few in herself, though she focused more on the people in town stuck in the cave ins. Jimmy, Gideon, and Analise were the only ones that survived the massacre. Nigel and Ethel managed to find them in time and get them to safety.

#tts #rta #tangled #tangled the series #rapunzel's tangled adventure #nerd talks #headcanon #corona citizens #corona #corona nobility

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lokilickedme · 3 years

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The Queen of Springtown

I’m going to tell you a story. It’s a true story. There’s a bit of conjecture here and there to fill in empty spots, but not a lot. It’s a story about my grandmother - my paternal grandmother, not my maternal grandmother - I feel the need to specify who exactly it is because mom’s mom has a bit of a story too, but that’s for later.

This one’s about the one I’m going to call Elizabeth. Elizabeth was her middle name, it was a family name, it belonged to her mother and her grandmother I believe, though I didn’t know any of those people so I couldn’t swear by it. The family records are long gone if they ever existed.

Elizabeth’s last name was one of those romantically ridiculous names that still clung to old families at the turn of the century. It had a lot of extraneous letters at the end, a handful of unnecessary and partially silent sounds that looked beautiful in the flowery handwritten script of the time, a noble sounding -eaoux that did little more than tag a fancy sounding o onto the back end. A lot of fuss for such a little piece of sound. And when Elizabeth’s grandfather moved his family from France to Ireland and signed the manifests upon arrival in the new old land, he dropped the -eaoux and shortened the family’s name to four tiny letters and a single syllable. They were Irish now.

Elizabeth’s father carried the new name and the new heritage, and when he was of age he went and married an Irish beauty named - yep, Elizabeth. They say she was redheaded and blue eyed and fair skinned, though no pictures exist to prove it. All that exists is my grandmother, who supposedly looked just like her mama. She didn’t remember Ireland...she was too young when her daddy moved his family to a new land just like his own daddy had done, and she never really told anyone she was Irish. No one actually knew, once her parents were gone.

But you could tell. She looked it - flame red hair, china blue eyes, fair skin. She had the bones of whatever French nobility had been in her lineage from way back, but her colors were the Emerald Isle all the way. A beauty like you’d see in the movies, petite and ladylike and perfectly put together.

But my god that woman had a wild streak that dated right back to the Celts whose blood made up half of what she was.

(continued under the cut because long story)

So Elizabeth grew up in America, the daughter of an Irish mother and a French father. She had brothers and sisters, quite a few, though I never knew any of them. I believe I met two of them when I was too young to remember much about the encounter, but I’ve always found it hilarious that one of her sisters was named Bill. Bill, like the man’s name. I never found out why and I’m not entirely sure there was ever actually a reason. It was just one of those things.

The newly American family settled in Texas. And when Elizabeth was very young - probably not yet in her 20′s, though nobody knows for sure just how old she actually was because it’s likely she tended to fib a bit about her age to get into places she had no business being - she got herself involved with the Texas mafia.

Now let me tell you a thing or two about the Texas mafia. It wasn’t an official operation - not like the Italian Mafioso or the Eastern Syndicates or whatever the hell was going on between Florida and Cuba at the time. But it was every bit as dangerous and vicious and bloody and corrupt as any of those bigger organizations, and it was led for the most part by a man I’m going to call Big Joe.

This was the early 1940′s or thereabouts. Elizabeth was a party girl - up for anything, always out and about, girl-gang at the swing club, the works. And Big Joe saw her in the club one night, it may very well have been his club she was dancing at, and the proverbial first-sight thing kicked him hard in the gonads. This girl was a looker, and she was dancing with everyone in the place, whooping it up, living life like tomorrow it was all going to take a header into the sea. He had to have her.

And he did.

Big Joe was likely in his late 30′s, maybe early 40′s. There’s not a lot of information on him other than a handful of facts mentioned once and only once by my grandmother to my aunt - that Big Joe was a handsome man, big and tough and a snazzy dresser, and he always had enough money in his pocket to take Elizabeth anywhere she wanted to go and buy her anything she wanted to buy. And Elizabeth, party girl extraordinaire, was all up for that.

So Elizabeth and Big Joe become a thing. Everybody knows she’s his squeeze - and suddenly not a male soul in Dallas or the surrounding metropolitan areas will dare to lay an eye on her, not even a quick glance, because she’s Big Joe’s girl. And that means something. Elizabeth doesn’t know quite what it means because she’s likely not even 20 yet, but Big Joe is fun and romantic and he takes her on trips and buys her nice clothes. He buys her a ring, a blood red garnet, a ring that I inherit many decades later. He’s going to marry her, he says. She doesn’t care much one way or the other, she’s having too much fun dancing every night in his club, traveling with him, going shopping, rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous of the Southwest. She’s all but a star, protected and adored. Big Joe’s men follow her everywhere she goes when she’s not with him. And Big Joe starts going out of town without her a lot, taking care of business that he never tells her the details of.

She’s cool with that. He’s a businessman, that’s what he’s always told her. Things to take care of out of town. The Boss. He has a lot of operations to oversee, operations that make all that money he spends on her.

She has no idea what he actually does.

All she knows - or cares to know - is that when he comes back to town he ushers her around town in his big fancy black car, buying her furs and expensive dinners, showing her off to society. When he isn’t slapping her around...but hey, that’s part of the deal isn’t it? It’s the 1940′s, and Big Joe is very much a man of the era. Women grew up knowing they’d have to take the back of a man’s hand from time to time, and Elizabeth knew which side her bread was buttered on. She kept Big Joe happy, put a smile on his face, did the old grin-and-bear-it on the rest of it.

And then one night Big Joe comes banging on her door. He’s frantic. He pushes a set of keys into her hand - keys to the fancy black car that takes her everywhere - and tells her to keep it there, at her house. Don’t drive it anywhere, just keep it there. He’ll contact her soon and tell her what to do.

He leaves in another car with one of his men, and that’s the last time Elizabeth ever sees him.

A few weeks later she gets a letter from Big Joe telling her to drive the car into Grapevine Lake, on the far side by the shoals. Don’t open the trunk, he says. Put a brick on the gas pedal and put it in drive. Do it at night and make sure nobody sees you.

That night Elizabeth picks up her best friend and they drive the car to Grapevine to do as Big Joe said, sinking it in the murky green water on the far side of the lake. The two girls - just girls, barely even women yet - stand on the shore watching it disappear into the deep dark.

A week later Big Joe is shot to death. A deal gone bad maybe, or a competitor moving into the territory. Nobody really knows - grandmother never said. Don’t think I haven’t done my research...I know what I know, and according to a nearly nonexistent little trove of newspaper articles microfiched in a tiny little library in Azle Texas that isn’t even there anymore, odds are very likely that Big Joe went down in a shootout with the Dallas Police Department.

Elizabeth never opened the trunk of that car. At least she said she didn’t...it’s one of the many things that nobody ever knew or will ever know, because once she shut the door on that part of her life and moved on, it might as well have never happened. Getting this much out of her was outrageously difficult. Thanks to my very tenacious and very persevering aunt, what I’ve just told you managed to survive. It’s very likely my aunt was the only person she ever told, and it’s very likely I in turn am the only person my aunt ever told. And now my aunt is in her 70′s and in poor health, and this little unknown family story has started poking around at the back of my skull. I don’t want it to be lost. I don’t like the idea of soon being the only person alive who knows it. It’s not a spectacular story, but it’s testament to the fact that extraordinary things happen to ordinary people, probably more often than you’d think - and that those ordinary people sometimes take it all to the grave with them.

Elizabeth - my dad’s mom, my grandmother, the one I look like and act like and laugh like, the one whose cheekbones and eyes and hair and size I was born with, passed away twenty-something years ago. She lived through some extraordinary things. After the demise of Big Joe she married an oil roughneck, one of the semi-transient oilfield workers that were prevalent in the Texas Panhandle at the time, and had two children with him - one of whom was my father. The roughneck was the epitome of the James Dean romantic brooding bad boy type, handsome and manly, but unfortunately also a scoundrel who had a second family in another city that he went to every other month when he traveled to another rig for work. She left him when she found out. It was almost unheard of at the time, a young mother taking her two little kids and leaving her husband to be on her own, but she did it. And when my father was 12 she met and married a very tall, very handsome, very Cary Grant-esque railroad worker who loved life every bit as much as she did.

They were together for the rest of her life. I’ve never to this day seen two people more in love than Elizabeth and Jesse. I spent many summers in Texas with them and not a night went by that I couldn’t hear them giggling in the next room after lights-out, talking and laughing quietly until granddad’s wallshaking snores echoed through the house. It just about killed him when her heart gave out. But she was old, and she’d lived a life worth living. There was nothing in her face in those final moments that could ever convince anyone she wasn’t ready and willing to go when the time came.

I’d been married for a couple of years when she died, and my husband and I traveled to Texas for the funeral. The first night there, as my aunt brought out grandmother’s jewelry box and told me to take whatever I wanted, the story was passed from her to me. And when it was all told I opened a little drawer in the bottom of the jewelry box and pulled out an old garnet ring that I’d seen before, when I was a small child snooping in grandma’s stuff. I’d always been fascinated with it...it just looked like it had a story to tell. That’s it, my aunt said. That’s the ring he gave her. That’s all she ended up with.

It was the only thing I took.

The church was so full the next morning you’d have thought it was the final sendoff for some local celebrity. Everybody loved my grandmother, everybody, but this was sort of astounding. Some of them I knew from my childhood, from many many summers spent in the Panhandle, but people came from all over to say goodbye and nobody in the family knew who a lot of them were. They just showed up, some of them cried, some just stood in the back of the church all stoic in black suits. Some were very old. And when it was over and I turned around to watch a group of distinctly important-looking old gentlemen quickly and quietly leave the building, I looked over at my aunt and pointed at them. She arched her eyebrows in that way she always did, that way, the way that said What did I tell you?? - and I wondered if maybe all those years ago some of Big Joe’s men hadn’t pulled that car out of Lake Grapevine and found the trunk empty.

I mean...this is Elizabeth we’re talking about.

#true story

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guessimwritingficsagain · 3 years

Text

To Be Seen, Part Seven

Warnings : depression

Author's note : I based my depiction of Frankie's wife on the movie Laggies that I mentioned before. It's not exactly the same thing but I liked the way the mom was depicted in the movie and how, in the end, everybody made mistakes. I'm still very sad Lynn Shelton left us. So I guess, in a way, this is dedicated to her.

Chapter One ; Chapter Two ; Chapter Three ; Chapter Four ; Chapter Five ; Chapter Six

------

Two weeks later, you broke down. You’d felt it coming, used as you were to that grey cloud slowly sneaking its way into your brain. You called in sick on a Saturday night and turned off your phone, not even feeling guilty about that.

Linda had had her meeting with her ex, and they’d both been tentatively hanging out, trying to fix something that was so broken you didn’t know if there was ever a chance it could be fixed. You’d stayed out of the way, of course. You hadn’t spoken to Linda except for the occasional text to check on her. That left a sinking feeling in your stomach, one that came with the realization that even though you considered Linda your friend, you were also her ex, first and foremost, and though she didn’t mind poking into your love life, she seemed reluctant for you to know about hers. Even though you couldn’t really blame her, that heaviness never went away. That was the first sign.

Jessie’s story was something else altogether. James and Will had set up a tight sleeping schedule at Jessie’s house - a tight schedule of following her to work and staying with her all day, too. Will had involved all the boys except Frankie. They were taking turn watching her, making sure she and her kid were safe. You’d managed to talk them out of going to the guy’s place and beating him up - barely. But you knew that couldn’t last. The way Will had vibrated when you explained the situation told you everything you needed to know about that. Talking to Jessie hadn’t been easy either, because she’d first shut you out completely and resented her brother for telling you, you for telling Will, and Will for telling everybody else. That was understandable too, but things were tense between the two of you, and since none of the men wanted to include you in what you called the Jessie Watch in your head, you were left to watch and worry from afar.

But the worst thing was the complete and utter silence from Frankie. He wouldn’t answer your texts or your calls. You kept replaying the only phone call he’d answered to just like you’d kept replaying the moment he’d offered you wine and chocolates for Christmas - God, you wished you could go back to that time.

You dial his phone number, hoping he picks up. He does, starting with :

‘Listen, now’s not a good time. I’m sorry but I got some things to deal with right now. I’ll call you back.’

Unnerved by the tone of his voice, unnerved by his answer, and thinking we don’t even see each other anymore and I thought you liked me and trusted me you bluntly answer :

‘Pope told me.’

The silence on the other end in unbearable, so you continue :

‘Frankie, talk to me. Don’t shut me out, please.’

You’re begging, and you don’t care that you are.

‘It’s fine.’ He eventually mumbles, his voice unconvincing. ‘I’ll sort this out. I just need some time.’

Some time was more than two weeks apparently, and two weeks was your breaking point.

You felt alone in a way you’d never felt before.

That led you here, right to this moment, you opening a bottle of wine, all by yourself. You sat on your couch, and drank a glass. Then, a second. By the third, you were turning on your phone and dialing your mother. When she picked up, you completely broke down. After the phone call, exhausted by all the crying, you left your phone on the couch and went to bed. The battery was empty when you woke up the next morning, feeling puffy and barely keeping it together. You didn’t bother to plug it in.

As agreed upon the night before, your father picked you up a bit before noon. Starbuck was in her bag, and you’d thrown some clothes in a luggage. You felt a wave of relief wash over you when you put it in your childhood’s bedroom, Starbuck already carefully sniffing around the house. You called your boss to ask to use all of the vacation days you had. You didn’t know what deity to thank for the fact that he agreed. You knew it was all wrong. You knew you should be here for Jessie, for everyone. You father covered that : he went to Anna and Phil, told them about the situation and made them promise not to say a word.

You had three weeks of vacation, and nothing to do but pretend you were a teenager again, living with your parents.

Your father kept in touch with Phil and Anna, if only to get news about what was going on with your friends. At the end of the first week, he came back with a letter. You felt yourself shaking until he added :

‘It’s from Anna.’

He heard your sigh of relief but didn’t say a word, turning around to leave you in peace. As he got to the door, though, he turned around and announced :

‘One of these days, I’m gonna have to have a talk with that boy of yours.’

He looked tired, and worried. Your voice wavered as you answered :

‘You won’t have to if he’s not my boy anymore, Dad.’

You felt like crying, but you didn’t. You turned your attention to the letter instead, and smiled at the first line. Anna had taken to give you your own nickname every time you compared her to Jane from Pride and Prejudice.

Dear Elizabeth,

How long and lonely are the days without you. Our dear cook is not quite himself, since you’ve been away, as he has to endure me without you to soothe the pain in his ass that I am. The counter has lost its light, and even the birds seem to sing in a more quiet manner, as if they were missing their dear friend too.

I hope your dear feline companion Starbuck is doing well in her new surroundings. I do not worry much, though: change can be difficult, but she is anything but faint-hearted.

I will keep writing to you, dear Elizabeth, if only to let you know if a respectable gentleman of good fortune ever comes in to charm me. You must promise, though, that you shall write back.

Your Jane.

The letter was so sweet and thoughtful , with Anna’s clumsy attempt at sounding Jane Austen-ish, you finally cried, only this time, the tears were not all bitter. You could call her, but this seemed more fun. You fumbled around to find a piece of paper and picked up a pen.

Dear Jane,

How sweet of you to write to me. I cannot express how much I miss you too. Do not worry about Phil, for he is softer for you than you know. I am sure you are quite exaggerating to hasten my return. Alas, I will remain where I am, for I find this retreat is beneficial to my health.

Starbuck has taken to her new life quite readily, and is currently enjoying a lovely nap in the sun.

Guard your feelings well, my dear. Experience has taught us much in this matter, recently.

I’m writing a return address on the back, so you can write to me through the post-office and avoid my poor father the task of being the delivery man.

Your Elizabeth.

You left the house for the first time this week to mail the letter.

Those three weeks went by like this.

You learnt that Linda and her ex had called it quits for good. You learnt that Will eventually drove to Jessie’s now-ex-boyfriend’s house and beat the shit out of him, and that everybody watched it happen with glee. You learnt that Frankie’s ex-wife was still in town. Staying on the couch.

You wanted to throw up all the time, these days.

You still didn’t turn on your phone. You used your parents’ line to get an appointment to the doctor. The woman only had to look at you to say :

‘Yeah, you’re not going back to work.’

You knew what she meant : you barely recognized yourself when you looked in the mirror. You didn’t sleep much, you didn’t eat much, and it all showed. When you came home, your father hesitantly said :

‘They’re starting to be worried. They’re asking a lot of questions to Anna.’

You found that you didn’t care, and a little voice at the back of your head warned you that this was worrying but you ignored it. It was so easy not to think. You enjoyed the feeling - maybe a little too much, said the voice again. You ignored it again. You were standing on that fine line : you were aware that you weren’t fine, but you weren’t doing anything about it. You knew it would only take a push to bring you to the other side : and then, you wouldn’t be aware anymore that you were not fine.

‘I got two weeks more.’ You answered instead.

———

You hadn’t seen Frankie in five weeks.

You’d been feeling better, lately, but still considered going back to work. And by that you meant going back to work at all, ever again. You weren’t good at facing your problems, you knew that, and that whole existential crisis about your future sounded a lot like running away but you didn’t have the strength to face anything right now. You wanted Frankie and your friends to make some king of grand gesture while knowing they didn’t have the means to reach you. You knew that was ridiculous and a little bit fucked up. You kept at it anyway.

Anna visited you more and more. The first time she’d shown up unannounced, she looked so hesitant it broke your heart. You’d hugged her so hard and she’d given it back the same way. She took to showing up in the morning, when your parents were on their daily stroll, though she happily stayed for lunch. Your parents, of course, adored her.

So, that morning, when someone rang at the door, you expected it to be her. You realized your mistake the second you opened it. You took a step back, speechless, and Will and Santi used your surprise to push past you and come in, very much uninvited.

On autopilot, your brain pretty much gone, you turned around and just stared at them. They stared right back, Pope with a hard look on his face. Will, though, looked like he wanted to hug you but didn’t dare. He seemed to struggle for a minute, before opening with :

‘Benny is very upset you missed his last fight. It was a big one.’

You found your tongue, even if it felt heavy in your mouth.

‘Well, I’ve been…’

‘You’ve been what ?’ Interrupted Santi, his arms crossed and his gaze unforgiving. ‘Ignoring us for five weeks ?’

‘My phone is dead.’

‘For five weeks ? Cut the crap.’

‘How did you find me ?’

You crossed your arms too. Whatever reunion you’d imagined, that wasn’t it. The reality of the situation was starting to sink in and you were trying to get angry, because if you got angry, then you wouldn’t break down. You could feel the tension building up your spine, knew exactly what it meant too : that conversation was not going to go well because whatever happened, whatever your reaction would be, the part of your brain labeled stupid and self-destructive was going to take over.

‘How did you find me ?’ You repeated, your fingers digging into the flesh of your arms to try and ground you.

Apparently, though, your brain wasn’t the only one with a part labeled stupid because instead of answering the question, Pope just decided to go with :

‘Do you realize how Jessie feels ? Do you realize how we all feel ? We had to take care of your friend, your friend because you just bailed on us while her fucking ex-boyfriend was beating the shit out of her.’

The silence that followed was heavy, as you could feel both the anger coming off of Santi and the panic that was shaking Will. Your voice was cold, emotionless, as you answered :

‘I was there. Except nobody wanted me there. I was completely useless.’

‘Bullshit. So what, you disappear ? Jesus, Frankie must have a thing for women who pull that kind of stunt because you’re the second one. The boy’s not very smart, apparently.’

‘Pope.’ Will’s voice rang loud in your ears, but you were frozen to the spot. You wanted to answer with some smartass remark, something petty along the line of well she’s back now, so who needs me anyway, just to get back at Santi because you knew in your heart Frankie wouldn’t just leave you like that. You knew there was more to the story but Frankie had completely shut you out before you went off the grid and now Santi was in front of you, scolding you as if you were a child, the whole thing feeling too much and not real at all, like you were having a really bad nightmare.

Pope ignored Will’s warning and went on :

‘You know the worst part ? He’s so worried he’s going crazy right now. We’re fucking back to square one, when I had to pick up the pieces when the other one left.’

‘Pope, stop.’ You heard Will say.

You opened your mouth, just a reflex, because your brain was empty. You couldn’t think anymore. But you opened your mouth anyway and realized too late you wouldn’t be able to contain the sob crawling up your throat. Breaking down it is, then, was your last thought before you started crying and shaking uncontrollably. So you ran to your room, leaning on the walls to avoid falling.

You were crying so hard you didn’t hear the door open, some time later. You felt the bed dip, though, when someone sat next to you.

‘Go away.’

‘I’m sorry.’ Will’s voice answered as a hand went to your hair. ‘Come on, deep breaths. Everything’s gonna be okay but I need you to breathe, okay ?’

Your hand shot up to grab his arm in a steely grip to steady yourself. You complied, though. After a while, you felt like you could breathe again. Will’s hand kept stroking your hair as he started talking :

‘Listen, Pope’s an asshole, we all know that. Anna briefed me a bit about everything. She wasn’t the one who gave us your address, by the way. I swear, the woman is unbreakable. Linda just figured you might be at your parents’ house and we looked it up. I’m a bit ashamed it took us that long to think about it, honestly.’

He chuckled, and went on :

‘Anyway, listen. Frankie’s been really overwhelmed by his ex coming back, and he didn’t react well, though I must say you answered in kind but I get it. He told me how he kept you out of the loop and I know how hard that must have been for you because I can see how much you care about him. It’s so obvious, the two of you. It was even before anything happened. I know Frankie is, you know, the quiet one, and he’s not all sharp angles and shit like the rest of us, but he turns into a puddle when you’re here. He’s unburdened when you’re around. We used to give him shit because he wouldn’t talk to the cute bartender.’

You smiled, still not looking at Will, but he was looking at you and he saw it.

‘Remember when he came to ask you, for Maria’s birthday ? We made him do it. Benny taunted him. He said that if he had to get up and ask you that, he’d also get your phone number and a date with you.’

‘I’d never go on a date with Benny.’ You replied, your voice hoarse.

‘Yeah, you’re smarter than that. Remember the Christmas presents ? Frankie was having a bloody existential crisis over this. He wanted to buy you a book. Linda gave him ideas but he was freaking out because he was scared he was going to buy you a book you wouldn’t like. I actually had to text Jessie about your favorite wine and get Frankie to go shopping with me so he would stop freaking out. Pretty sure I’ve never seen him stressed out like that and we served together.’

‘You already had Jessie’s number ?’ You asked, pretty sure Jessie would have told you right away about that.

His voice grew quiet, thoughtful.

‘Yeah. I had asked for her number one day. But I was really drunk so I never used it. Figured she’d given it to me because she felt obligated or something since I was a regular. I thought I was taking advantage. If I had made a move earlier …’

You turned your head towards Will, then, knowing you looked like a mess and not caring one bit.

‘What happened is not your fault, Will.’

And then, it hit you.

‘Wait, earlier ? That means you did it ?’

His smile was blinding. You squeezed his arm.

‘Good for you.’

You both fell silent for a moment but Will wasn’t done.

‘Listen, that thing with Frankie’s ex, it’s not what you think, even though he’s been an idiot for not telling you. Wendy came back because she’s lost. She thinks she made a mistake, leaving like that, and she’s still trying to figure out if she wants to be a mom. It’s not about Frankie and her, okay ? It’s about Maria. She wants to try, maybe. She still doesn’t know. Pope shouldn’t have talked to you like that but he’s right : Catfish is lost right now, because he misses you and he doesn’t know how to fix it. He’s too damn respectful to show up here unannounced, too. That’s why we came.’

He kept stroking your hair as your mind processed everything.

When you left the room, Santi was waiting in the garden. You went over to him and hugged him. He whispered apologies in your ear.

-------------------

Taglist :

@pedritobalmando @ubri8

#pedro pascal #frankie morales x reader #frankie 'catfish' morales #triple frontier

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shiftyskip · 4 years

Text

Joseph “Joe” David Liebgott

The Real Joseph Liebgott:

Joseph David Liebgott was born in Lansing, Michigan in May 17, 1915 to Joseph (Josef) Liebgott Sr and Mary. Joseph Liebgott Sr was of German descent, but he was born in Beresztocz, Hungary. Joe’s mother was Yugoslavian, but was reported as born in either Yugoslavia or Hungary I am not sure which one because records show both. On his father’s side his grandparents were Yugoslavian as well. On his mother’s sider, they seem to be from Hungary. His mother immigrated in 1909, Lieb’s father immigrated in 1912.

Below is a picture believed to be his parents.

He was the oldest of his siblings. He has four sisters: Mary, Elizabeth, Anna, and Barbara, and one brother, Stephen/Steffen . Both of his parents spoke German, which would later help him during the war. His father worked in the auto industry before they moved.

His family soon moved to California around 1927 and his dad became a barber. He was the oldest of his siblings, one brother and four sisters. He was extremely protective of his younger sisters

Liebgott and his siblings attended Catholic schools. This is where learned how to box and played soccer.

After high school, Liebgott drove a taxi around San Francisco. This career was temporary and he soon attended barber college.

He was also previously married before the war. He was married in July 31, 1933 to a woman named Frances. They had one child, David Albert together on February 27, 1934. But the couple soon divorced within a year, and he was living with his family again by 1940, where he was working on a forestry project. Meanwhile his ex-wife and son moved into her family. Here is Joe and Frances:

He eventually became a barber and this was his career when he enlisted at the age of 26. Liebgott chose the paratroopers to be able to make more money to be able to put a down payment on his parents’ house.

Included is a photo of Joe and his mother

He has a Jewish service card, registered under his mother’s name. But his family denied he was Jewish, stating he was a German Roman Catholic. I’ll attach it below (filtered for safety).

In his draft card he is listed as 5 feet and 5 inches tall and was 109 pounds. He had blue-grey eyes and brown hair.

Malarkey remembers meeting Liebgott on his way to Toccoa where they became part of the original Toccoa men. Liebgott was trained under the harsh command of Herbert Sobel.

Liebgott didn’t talk much about the war, so there will be little but other’s words to put here. This is a photo from 1945 in France.

Right before the jump out of the airplane, he put his barber skills to use and gave a few of the men Mohawks.

He would jump out of the airplanes with the rest of the men on June 6, 1944. He received the bronze star for his bravery at Brecourt Manor, where he worked with Winters and several other men, Compton, Guarenere, Wynn, Lipton, Toye, Malarkey, and Ranney to destroy a German Battery firing on Utah Beach on the day of the D-Day Invasion.

He cut off the finger of a German that he had bayoneted and took the man’s ring near Carentan. At Carentan, Ed Tipper was seriously wounded after clearing out a house with Liebgott. Liebgott grabbed Tipper, yelled for a medic, and told Tipper that he’d be okay. Welsh and Lieb dragged Tipper into the street until Welsh could get him back to the aid station.

After Brecourt, Compton recalls a painful memory with Liebgott in his book, Call of Duty, Compton and Liebgott were patrolling along hedges at dusk. Across the way, in another set of hedges were two men. Both were dressed in German ponchos, one was holding a German gun. Assuming that these men were in fact German, he and Liebgott shot the men. Come to find out, when they checked their dog tags, they were not Germans. They were Americans. They had just killed fellow soldiers in friendly fire.

October 5, 1944. Winters sent a few Youmen out on patrol to take an outpost near a windmill. Liebgott and a few other men (James Alley among them) went with Sgt. Youmen. They sent one man ahead, to look out over the dike. The man spotted German machine guns. German voices approached the remaining boys. Lieb called out for the Youman, as we was trailing behind, only to have grenades thrown at him and the other men. Liebgott got minor wounds while James Alley received 32 shrapnel wounds in his left side, stretching from his face down. They’d run into a company of SS.

Liebgott was known for being rough with prisoners, the fighting that followed the injuries wit the SS company was a prime example of this. After Winters led his patrol to attack these Germans, in which during the fighting they lost William Dukeman, 7 Germans surrendered. The most famous story of Liebgott is as follows, in Dick Winter’s words.

As Winters explains in his book, “Tech/5 Joseph D. Liebgott had been slightly wounded in the arm, but he was ambulatory so I assigned him the mission of escorting seven German prisoners to the rear. Liebgott had earned the reputation of being one of Easy’s best combat soldiers, but we had all heard stories that he was very rough on prisoners. Liebgott was one of Easy Company’s “killers,” so I deemed it appropriate to take a bit of caution. When he heard me say, “Take the prisoners back to the battalion command post,” he replied. “Oh, boy! I’ll take care of them.” In his exuberance, Liebgott stood up and paced back and forth and he was obviously very nervous and concerned. I stopped him in his tracks. “There are seven prisoners and I want seven prisoners turned over to battalion.” Liebgott was highly incensed and started to throw a tantrum.Somewhat unsure of how he would react, I then dropped my M-1 to my hip, threw off my safety, and said, Liebgott, drop all your ammunition and empty your rifle.” There was much grumbling and swearing, but he did as I had ordered. “Now,” I said, “you can put one round in your rifle. If you drop a prisoner, the rest will jump you.””

Liebgott got all 7 prisoners back.

Joe would recover in a hospital in England with Webster, but he was back before Bastogne. Here is the record for that:

Name:Joseph D Liebgott Race:White, includes Mexican (White) Rank:Enlisted Man Admission Age:29 Birth Date:abt 1915 Admission Date:Oct 1944 Discharge Date:Nov 1944 Military Branch:Infantry, Parachute Troops or Units Diagnosis:FirstLocation: Ulna, generally; CausativeAgent: Artillery Shell, Fragments, Afoot or unspecified Type of Injury:Casualty, battle Injured in Line of Duty:In line of duty Type of Discharge:Duty Length of service:2 Year(s), 6 Month(s)

In Bastogne, Winters made him a runner to get away from the tension and constant stress of fighting. One story of his service was outside of Foy is the battle of Noville, he and Earl Hale ducked into a barn and took 6 SS officers prisoner. Outside the barn, a shell exploded. One of the SS officers took this as an opportunity and jumped Hale. He slit Hale’s throat. Liebgott instantly shot and killed the officer. He then killed the others. Hale survived miracuously.

At some point, before the end of the war, Liebgott became first platoon’s interpreter-radioman. This was because he could speak some German. But Webster claimed in his book that the German’s didn’t understand his Yiddish.

He was with Webster when they took Hitler’s Nest. They spent their time drinking Hitler’s alcohol together with a few other men. He was living with Headquarters Company while there.

Of course, the war came to an end and everyone who wanted to was discharged.

Over the course of the war, Lieb was injured 3 times and won 3 purple hearts. He refused one because the wound was “just a scratch”. He would receive partial disability for his wounds.

When he returned home, he disappeared for two years. Eventually he was found living in Yuma, California. He didn’t come to reunions, even when offered multiple times. His father simply told the vets “not to mess with him”.

After the war, Liebgott was a barber for a short time. He married again to a woman named Peggy in 1949. They had eight kids together. Making Lieb’s total children come to nine, although he was mostly involved with the last eight. They lived on a barber’s salary, not leaving much room for fun activities but everyone had their basic needs met. He often only had one day a week off and would take his kids to a Long Beach pike, where they would visit an amusement park.

Liebgott liked to bet on the ponies at the racetrack. Every other sunday, him and his boss would take the boss’ airplane down to Mexico.

He is believed to have never contacted anyone from his days in Easy Company. He just wanted to get away from the war.

The Liebgotts divorced in April of 1969. She remarried, but he never did. He was described as really quiet by his granddaughter.

She states, in Marcus Brotherton’s book Company of Heroes (pages 120-121) “His hands looked like a man who worked with his hands, sunspots all over. He absolutely loved his grandkids. he had false teeth that he flipped out of his mouth and smiled, threatening to kiss us with his gums. He was a tickler. He never held babies over his shoulder...because he wanted them to see everything....He didn’t have a lot of money - I’m pretty sure all he had was his veteran’s benefits...He made all of the bikes for the grandkids by scouring thrift stores for dilapidated bikes. He stripped the bikes down to their frame, fixed and assembled them as good as new. He let each grandchild pick the color of new paint for his or her bike....I always knew the specific foods we were going to eat at his house. He had bite-sized candy bars and store brand soda-pop. There was no drinking water in his house. He always lived in rental houses...”

He was very neat, and keep his house and appearance orderly. However, he was always working in the garage, so the house had black smudges from the dirt on his hands.

However, Liebgott was not perfect. While he hated the Nazis, he was also seen as a bigot, maybe even harsher. Rhonda explained that he threw the n word around like it wasn’t a big deal. He blamed the wrong goings of the world on different ethnic groups. Rhonda started seeing a guy from El Salvador, he asked if her partner “even spoke English?”

As he grew older, Lieb got sicker. He eventually lost the use of one of his legs from a hernia. He was confined to a chair and hated any new technology. He was stuck in a wheelchair, angry when he would hit a cabinet.

Lieb did not talk about his military career until towards his end. He would spend time with his son Jim, watching tv talking about the war during a war movie. He would talk about the war when he was mad, possibly angry at himself for doing a lot of killing and other things that people his age shouldn’t have to do.

In 1992, Liebgott developed a tumor in his neck, near his windpipe that would cause a lot of pain. Jim took him to the hospital on Father’s Day. Shortly later, on June 28, 1992 Liebgott died. He was against a funeral and just wanted to be cremated, so his family did as he wished. They still have his ashes and letters and the Toccoa book.

#Real Life Band of Brothers #real band of brothers #joe liebgott #joseph liebgott #band of brothers #Band of Brothers fandom

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sinditia · 2 years

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WELL. The ones I got are: Givenchy Live Irresistible Rosy Crush, Ferragamo Emozione, Ferragamo Signorina, Elie Saab Le Parfum Essentiel, Caron Lady Caron, Caron Parfum Sacre, Burberry Body, Elizabeth and James Nirvana White, and Calvin Klein Obsessed. I also got a mini Kate Spade Walk on Air and an Elizabeth and James Nirvana Rose rollerball because they were super cheap! I'm a basic bitch who loves soft florals, specifically rose, so I'm v excited about some of these.

oooooh those sound really interesting! i think my sister has the nirvana rose. i quite like that one. the givenchy rosy crush and parfum sacre sound really good too. i love rose scents, but particularly when it's paired with oud hehe. jo malone's velvet rose & oud is sooo good. jo malone had a valentine's collection recently centred around roses with really pretty limited edition packaging. i think they might still be available.

florals are a bit finicky for me. I'm not too fond of white florals like tuberose or jasmine, or when it's too green and fresh. but things like rose, iris, or orchid i can really enjoy if they're balanced well with something woody in the base.

oud is my favourite note i think. i like almost everything that has oud in it 😆 i think if you wanna try oud, a good starter one would be Hugo Boss Bottled Oud bc its got that apple-cinnamon note that makes it crisp and lighter. the oud is relatively faint on that one. Jo Malone's Oud & Bergamot is also a good one, lighter and fresher than Velvet Rose & Oud from that house.

have fun with your samples and future decants! feel free to slide in my inbox or dm me to let me know what you think of them. I'm curious to know and I'm always up to chat fragrances. I'm so happy there's someone i can talk fragrances with! i can seriously talk about this forever 😆

#replies

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creative-type · 3 years

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wake from death (and return to life) ix

AO3 first summary: Zoro had always been told Kuina died falling down a flight of stairs. But she didn’t fall, and she wasn’t dead.

It took Kuina almost five minutes of dangling over the rails of the ship to realize there was no wind. She was punch-drunk and giddy, the weight of uncertainty rolled off of her shoulders now that she had a clear path forward. She was a Revolutionary. She was going to be the greatest swordsman in the world.

Kuina allowed herself those five minutes. With everything she’d gone through in the last week and a half she’d more than earned them, and it had been so long since she’d felt any real excitement for her future. But no swordsman worth their blade would let themselves get lost in childish emotionalism. Kuina steadied herself with a few deep breaths, mentally drawing in the flights of fancy that had momentarily escaped from her imagination—daydreams of facing Dracule Mihawk at the behest of the Revolution, of proving once and for all that she could do what so many thought impossible, of reuniting with her father and Zoro proudly bearing the title Greatest.

It was like trying to wrangle a gaggle of unruly children. The more Kuina struggled to contain herself the more her imagination tried to run free, but she managed to settle back into the state of tranquil serenity that was more befitting of her training. The practical side of her, the part that quietly disapproved of this most recent turn of events, knew that now that she’d painted the broad strokes of her future it was high time to figure out what the hell Aria de Gris was doing now. It was then, and only then, that she noticed that the air was unnaturally still.

The sailors around her were not perturbed even as the Valor’s sails hung limp from their moorings. Kuina could feel that they were moving on the clear, mirror-flat sea. Slowly, but that was better than being dead in the water. Kuina wandered to the ship’s bow, noting that the Valor was sailing almost due south. If the Revolution had followed the same heading since leaving Tolouse, and Kuina had been unconscious for two full days, that meant…

“Don’t worry, we should be out of the Calm Belt by the end of the week.”

Kuina flinched, sword half-drawn before realizing it was only Dara using what had to be the most annoying Devil Fruit ability in the history of the world. Dara laughed as she popped out of the deck, hooking her thumbs in her pockets as Kuina shot her a glare.

But most of Kuina’s irritation was at herself for letting herself be caught by surprise, and she returned her attention back to the water. It was impossible to sail through the Calm Belt without some sort of engine, which the Valor lacked, to say nothing of the danger presented by the innumerable nests of sea kings that buffeted the Grand Line from the Four Blues.

Even as Kuina tried to wrap her mind around it, a dark shadow emerged from the depths directly in front of the ship. A high-pitched, eerie wail, almost like a siren’s song, reverberated through the air and deep into Kuina’s chest.

A monstrous head breached the surface so close to the Valor it sent rippling waves across its hull. Sprays of water jettisoned thirty feet into the air, exposing only part of a stripped, misshapen body before submerging once more. Great flukes, as large as a whale, but covered with algae-like strands of hair, slapped against the surface of the sea and sent sprays of salty water against the deck. Someone in the crow’s nest above whooped out a cry of encouragement.

Thoroughly confused, Kuina looked at Dara, whose grin only widened as she pointed to a tiny speck bobbing to the space recently vacated by the leviathan. “Oh look, there’s Cam. Someone should send a boat after her.”

“As if she’d take it!” a Revolutionary Kuina didn’t recognize shouted from across the deck.

“True,” Dara said contemplatively. Beckoning Kuina to follow, she meandered to the starboard side of the deck and loosened a rope ladder into the sea. “It’s probably faster to just let her swim.”

If Kuina hadn’t been so amazed by the fact Camille hadn’t gotten herself eaten, she would have marveled at the speed with which she cut through the unnaturally-still sea. Kuina considered herself a good enough swimmer, but Camille looked like she’d been born for the water. She moved like she was part fish, each stroke strong and graceful, returning to the Valor in moments. When she climbed back onto the decks she seemed sad to be there, looking back longingly at the water.

“So, how’s Fin?” Dara asked.

“Good, good. I adjusted the harness to fit more comfortably.” Camille arched an eyebrow at her friend while adjusting a leather thong around her neck, from which hung the biggest tooth Kuina had ever seen. “And his name isn’t Fin.”

“Well since you haven’t said what his name is, you’ve left me no choice but to improvise,” Dara retorted. She nudged Kuina in the ribs. “Can you believe she went through the effort of taming a sea king and then didn’t name it? ”

“You tamed a sea king?” Kuina said. “ How? ”

Camille rolled her eyes. “I didn’t tame anything. We’ve just...reached an understanding.” She gave Kuina an appraising look. “I’m surprised the doctor let you out of her grasp so soon.”

“She almost didn’t,” Kuina admitted.

Dara wrapped an arm around Kuina’s neck, ignoring the choked yelp of alarm and Kuina’s efforts to squirm free. “Forget about that! Did you hear, Kuina joined up. She’s officially one of the team!”

“I thought that was a given.” Camille said, utterly disinterested as she wrung the excess water from her shirt.

“When did you hear that?” Kuina said at the same time.

“Pfft, Dara knows pretty much everything on this ship,” Camille said. “You get used to it.”

Kuina frowned. She didn’t like the idea of someone with Dara’s ability nosing her way into business that wasn’t her own. If there was anything she’d learned since sailing with the Revolution, it was that there was very little in the way of privacy while at sea. Ships crowded everyone together, crewmates eating, sleeping, and working in close proximity. While the forced closeness had its advantages, Kuina was used to spending great blocks of time alone. It was something to get used to, and to be wary of.

“Don’t worry, your secrets are safe with me,” Dara said, tweaking the end of Kuina’s nose. “You saved me from losing five hundred berries, and to Lizard of all people. I am at your service.”

It took Kuina a moment to remember Dara’s ill-thought wager with Elizabeth, and before she could voice her protest Dara had taken her by the arm to make official introductions to the crew, Camille laughing a half-step behind.

There was John the cooper, and James the blacksmith. Among the deckhands Kuina was introduced to rapid-fire were Kojo, Zhao, Lin, Char, Sean, Jen, and Tiva, and by the end of it she had gotten them so thoroughly confused with one another she had no idea which one was which. Others were working belowdecks, or off-shift and resting.

Elizabeth was still regretfully in charge of cooking duties, while Lyudmila was the ship’s quartermaster and second in command. Kuina was surprised to hear that in addition to taming sea kings in her spare time, Camille was the crew’s navigator.

“And what is it you do?” Kuina asked as Dara dragged her back below decks for the grand tour.

“Get newbs like you up to speed. Now here’s Trini’s room—try not to get stuck in here unless you want to spend the afternoon feeding lettuce to snails.”

Kuina blinked in amazement. The communications room was packed full of terrariums housing snail phones of every size and color. At its center was an enormous machine that looked vaguely like what the marines used to send their faxes, with thin cords attached to half a dozen den den mushi. Behind the machine sat Trini wearing an oversized pair of headphones, deep in concentration.

“She’s scanning the airwaves,” Dara said in an exaggerated whisper, carefully closing the door once more. “Not that there’s much to intercept in the Calm Belt, but you never know with the marines these days.”

“The marines can cross the Calm Belt?” Kuina said. “I can barely believe we’re crossing the Calm Belt!”

“It’s all thanks to Fin. Sea king bulls don’t typically fight with one another unless it’s mating season, so even if he’s pulling along a tasty treat we should be all right. I think his song has something to do with it, too.” She made an exaggerated gesture. “As for the marines, I have no freaking clue, but it must be a pretty new development since Boss doesn’t know about it, and the Valor isn’t sea-king proofed either.”

“That’s right, this was a marine ship,” Kuina murmured, looking up at the planks with fresh eyes. It was funny, without the marine’s distinctive painted hulls, she’d never would have been able to tell the difference.

“Oh, yeah. Came with all the amenities, which is how Trini got her state of the art snail room.”

“So if you guys had a sea king snuck up your sleeve this whole time, why didn’t you use it during the battle?” Kuina asked. “A monster that size would have been useful on Tolouse.”

“Ach, must everything be about fighting with you?” Dara said. “You must never have seen a real sea king, but Fin’s practically a baby, not even half-grown. And it’s surprisingly smart—for all my teasing, Cam was right. The thing has a mind of its own and acknowledges no master. I don’t think we could get him to attack a ship if we wanted to.”

“But he’ll pull a ship through the Calm Belt?” Kuina said.

“It’s better than going the long way around, eh?” Dara said with a shrug. “Come on, I’ll show you where you’ll be sleeping.”

At the barracks, Kuina had her choice of seven open bunks. One, which happened to be closest to the door, had a small crate propped on top of the thin mattress. Inside was stuffed with clothes and basic belongings. When Kuina looked askance at Dara the light in her eyes dimmed.

“That’s Danny’s stuff,” Dara said. “The rest who died already have their things stowed for when we get back to base, but as far as any of us know she doesn’t have any family so we’re not really sure what to do with hers. I’d say for you to take the clothes since you don’t have any, but I don’t think they’d fit.”

Kuina drew her fingers over the box, trying to think if she’d said anything about any family in their short time together, but all she remembered her mentioning was an apprenticeship under a cruel master. Kuina’s throat tightened as the memory of Danny screaming hysterically echoed in her mind unbidden.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

Dara rubbed her neck uncomfortably. “It happens. I already told Boss when I bite it to sell all my stuff and use the money to have a party. If you all can’t be happy, at least you’ll be drunk.”

“I don’t drink,” Kuina said.

“Then you and Mila can be mopey together,” Dara said with determined cheerfulness. “It won’t matter to me, I’ll be dead. Now, where do you want to be? I’d be careful about that middle one there, it’s next to Lizard, and she snores terribly. ”

Kuina took the hint, and changed the subject, trying not to wonder how many of the bunks available to her had only emptied after the battle of Tolouse.

After the tour came lunch, and with two solid, if not especially tasty, meals under her belt, Kuina was beginning to feel more like herself again. The itch to train was back, and Kuina wanted nothing more to test the limits she’d recently expanded and chase after the high of battle, but much like her time on Belo Betty’s ship she was first subjected to the humiliation of being the newest and lowest-ranking sailor on a large and understaffed warship.

“You’re kind of shit at this, aren’t you?” Camille observed from her perch at the ship’s bow, watching as Kuina ran her mop over the deck for what felt like the hundredth time.

“You could help,” Kuina said.

“And deprive you of the opportunity to learn? Never.” She gave a long, catlike stretch. “By the way, you missed a spot.”

Kuina muttered an oath as she stabbed the mop into the bucket. “It isn’t as if it’s dirty.”

“Water expands and seals the wood, salt protects against rot.” Camille yawned, as if bored by the conversation, and wandered back to their useless rudder. As she passed Kuina, she said, “If you want to live in a drippy, softwooded ship, be my guest. As for me, I’d prefer not to die the first time a Grand Line squall hits.”

She left Kuina with her head bowed and cheeks burning. But the words had their intended effect and Kuina redoubled her efforts, determined from that point on that no one could in good conscience reprimand her sailcraft ever again.

It was nearing dark when de Gris and Lyudmila emerged from the captain’s quarters to call a meeting with the crew. After a long day of labor, Kuina’s muscles ached and she yearned for the sweet respite of bed. And it wasn’t as if the work had been taxing, especially after Clara Cross emerged from the infirmary like an avenging angel to tell off the entire crew, but especially Kuina, for overexerting herself.

There were some things not even Devil Fruit magic couldn’t sweep under the rug, and apparently the exhaustion of a near-death experience was one of them.

“All right everyone, gather round!” de Gris yelled. “Watchmen too! There aren’t any ships out here, and if the sea kings come after us we’re fucked anyway. I want everyone to hear this. Where’s Trini? She can leave the damn snails for ten minutes.”

The crew scrambled to obey the order. Kojo (or maybe Sean) went to gather those who were still belowdecks. Minutes later everyone was assembled in a loose circle around the main mast, with de Gris at the center. She paused a moment to ensure everyone was paying close attention, and under her stern gaze the idle chatter vanished into deathly silence.

Rays of dying light cast against de Gris’s back and framed her face in deep shadow. “I know you all have been wondering lately why the hell we were called to the East Blue so suddenly, and why we’re leaving just as quickly. I’ve heard you lot asking where our next destination was and wonder why I’ve not said where we’re going once we hit the Grand Line. Well, the answer’s simple. Until today, I didn’t know.”

From the folds of her coat, she pulled out an old and crumpled sheet of paper. Kuina squinted her eyes and was just able to make out the blurry picture of a masked figure. The bounty underneath, however, was clear as the sky above. Master-at-Arms Gemini, Wanted Dead or Alive. Bounty: B48,000,000.

Beside her, Dara snorted. “Oh, I bet the marine who thought up that name thought he was very clever.”

It was difficult to tell much from the photograph, but the one detail that was absolutely clear was Gemini’s strange, double-segmented arms, too long for an ordinary human and vaguely insectile. Kuina, who’d never seen anything like it before in her life, wondered what it would be like to fight someone who essentially had two elbows.

She brushed the thought away and turned to Gemini’s face. Their mask, fittingly enough, was divided vertically into halves, one dark and one light. The side that was dark was completely bereft of ornamentation; Kuina couldn’t even make out an eyehole to see out of. The side that was light, however, was painted with a garish grin. A shock of wiry black hair fell past their shoulders, but beyond that it was impossible to discern any identifying features. Baggy clothing and the poor quality of the photograph obscured anything else, even gender, and after spending this much time under de Gris's command, Kuina knew better than to assume.

“Gemini is a prominent figure in the criminal underground,” de Gris continued. “Arms dealing, drug trade, slavery, the whole lot. Removing them from the equation will make the world a safer place.”

“What’s an arms dealer got to do with the Revolution?” someone to Kuina’s right called. “And what have they got to do with the East Blue?” A murmur of agreement rippled through the crew.

“Enough!” de Gris bellowed, silencing them once more. “Tolouse's government were slavers, that much is now clear. They called it political exile to a labor camp, but the end result is the same—the World Government gave the king kickbacks for human chattel, using the Callihan Trading Company as a middleman. And we now now that the CTC was taking orders from Gemini. If Gemini is willing to go through so much effort to set up a scheme in some East Blue backwater, who knows what other fingers they have stuck into various pies around the world.”

“So we’re going after them,” Camille said, crossing her arms across her chest.

“That's right. So far Gemini has been able to stay one step ahead of us, but with the intel gathered on Tolouse we have the upper hand.” De Gris marched to the mast. In one smooth motion she drew a dagger hidden in her boot, and stabbed the bounty deep into the wood.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we’re going to Kyuka Island. In the days ahead I’ll be divvying out assignments. Any questions are to be directed toward Lyudmila or myself—out of an abundance of caution, you’re not to discuss your orders with anyone else on this ship. I’ll keelhaul anyone who tries.” At this her gaze went directly to Kuina, who got the impression these instructions were given strictly for her benefit. "Kyuka is marine territory through and through. I pray none of us fall into Government hands, but if we do, it's safest for the Revolution that each individual knows as little as possible about our plans."

After a pause, and hearing no objections, de Gris lit a cigarette for herself. “I’ll pay anyone who finds any intelligence on Gemini that leads to their capture or death the full value of their bounty. I’ll pay double to anyone who brings me their head. This chase has gone on long enough, I want this bastard dead. ” She flicked a bit of ash off the end of her cigarette and added, almost as an afterthought, “Dismissed.”

A gap in the circle opened to let de Gris through. As she passed, she grabbed Kuina by the shoulder. “Come on, greenhorn. It’s time we sort out your position on this ship.”

For the second time that day Kuina was led to the captain’s quarters. De Gris’s desk had been cleared away, the sea charts rolled back into their proper places and ashtrays emptied. Kuina slid back into a chair that smelled like tobacco. “What is it? Does the Revolution have Articles of Enlistment for me to sign? Is there a manifesto I’m supposed to study?”

“Don’t be stupid.” The sun had almost dipped below the horizon, and de Gris found a box of matches to light a kerosene lamp. The orange flame danced on its wick and flickered with the natural roll of the ship. “I’m told Dara gave you the runaround today.”

Kuina nodded.

“Clara never came screaming at me, so I have to assume you’re not feeling too poorly,” she mused, taking the time to light another cigarette.

“I’m fine,” Kuina said, rolling back her shoulders so de Gris couldn’t see the weariness in them.

“And have you taken that sword out of its sheath even once today?”

“Uh...no?” Kuina said.

“Unacceptable.” De Gris leaned back in her chair and let out a long stream of smoke. “You’re not some swabby or rigging monkey, you’re here because of your blade.” She looked at Kuina as if she were an idiot for not realizing this sooner.

“I’m willing to work just as hard as anyone else on this ship,” Kuina said stiffly.

“And you will. Harder, even, since you’re so far behind. But a ship is like…” She gesticulated, trying to find the right word. “It’s like a person. A crew is its own organism, and every one of us has to fit into their part. You don’t expect a heart to do the same work as a kidney, and no matter how hard you try, you’re not going to be half the sailor as the people who’ve spent their whole lives on the water. It’s ridiculous to think otherwise.”

Kuina nodded. What she said made sense, and in many ways Kuina agreed with her. But there was something about agreeing with Aria de Gris that didn’t sit right with her, so she said, “I have to learn sometime.”

“Obviously. I’m not about to let you be a liability once we hit the Grand Line, but there has to be balance. You’re no good to me if you get yourself killed because you spent too much time studying the different types of sails instead of your swordsmanship.” De Gris was pensive for a moment. “I’ll have Mila set up a schedule for you in the morning. Half the day working chores, the rest training. A few of my men use katana, but you’re better than all of them. Most of what you’ll do will have to be self study.”

“That’s fine. I haven’t had a master in years.”

De Gris looked surprised to hear this, but didn’t comment. “We have regular sparing times as well, to help our less practiced fighters build their skill, and to give the mainliners a chance to get used to each other's styles. Depending on how this all shakes out, you might be pairing with Dara or Camille for the upcoming mission. Do you know how to use a gun?”

“Of course not,” Kuina said, caught off-guard by the question.

“Then you’ll learn.” De Gris cut off Kuina’s protests before they could begin. “Can you kill someone at twenty yards with your sword?”

“No,” Kuina said mulishly.

“Then you need to know how to fire a gun, and probably keep one on you as a backup weapon. I have no use for senseless pride on this ship, girl,” she said as Kuina scrunched her nose in distaste. It’s your job to listen to what I say, and it’s my job to try and put you in a position to not die. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” Kuina said, still unhappy at the prospect of sullying her hands with a firearm.

Without warning, de Gris pounded her fist on her desk. The kerosine lamp tottered and threatened to fall, but her eyes never left Kuina’s, the scar on her cheek pulled taunt with her scowl.

“I said. Do. You. Understand ?”

“And I said yes, ” Kuina snapped. “I’ll learn to use you’re stupid gun, and when I figure out how to kill someone at fifty yards with my sword I’ll drop kick it into the ocean where it belongs." She crossed her arms across her chest. "I already told you I’ll do what you say so long as you don’t interfere with my ambition, so there’s no need to treat me like a child.”

They glared at one another for a long while, hackles raised, but this time Kuina refused to let herself be intimidated into backing down. Slowly, still without breaking eye contact, de Gris eased back into her chair and doused her cigarette. “I have put too many people’s belongings into boxes because they wouldn’t listen. For your own sake, I hope you’re not one of them.”

For the second time that day, memory of Danny's last words echoed in her mind. “You’re in luck, because right now I don’t own enough stuff to fit into a box, let alone anyone to send it to.”

“No one at all?” de Gris said, eyebrows raising.

Kuina’s breath hitched as she thought of her father back at Shimotsuki village. Would the Revolutionary Army be able to return her meager belongings home without the marines knowing? Would he be able to stand knowing she’d joined Dragon’s cause despite all his warnings? What about Ipponmatsu? He at least wasn’t under suspicion by the World Government...Or was he, now that she’d attacked Tashigi?

Of everyone she knew, it was probably safest to give her belongings to Zoro , but gods only knew what part of the Grand Line he’d found himself in. She almost laughed at the thought of him using two of her swords for himself.

“No one,” Kuina said. Her hands clenched into fists, nails digging crescent moons into her palms, but she kept her voice calm and her tone even.

After another heartbeat of painful silence, de Gris said, “Well, you’re not the only one." The words were probably meant to be reassuring, but Kuina felt they were anything but. “If you think of anybody, make sure someone knows.”

“I don’t plan on dying,” Kuina said.

De Gris snorted and lit another cigarette. “None of us do. Now get some grub and get to bed. You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow.”

Kuina rose to her feet. After a moment’s hesitation, she bowed slightly. “Thank you...Captain.”

De Gris waved her away with a dismissive flick of the wrist. “You don’t have to break your teeth saying it. I don’t give a damn what you call me so long as you follow orders. Just know I take discipline on this ship very seriously. Cross me, and keelhauling is the least you’ll have to worry about.”

Kuina didn’t doubt it for a second. Murmuring her goodbyes, she left de Gris to her cigarettes and her musings, grateful to be able to swallow the clean sea air once more.

#wake from death (and return to life)#creative-type writes #holy crap it's been forever since I updated this #I think I missed several chapters on tumblr #I apologize in advance for being bad at promoting my own work #one piece #kuina #One Piece Fanfiction

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